From Diana, with love

[Arsenal]

Mike was tending to Karen when he noticed that Blaze was becoming more and more agitated. He was concerned for a second, considered whether he could sucker punch her out quickly and handle things better when she came to. But he realized that she was not freaking out as much as going off so she could sort out what she had seen. It was hard to argue some of what she spoke of so he did not bother. But he did listen closely.

"Oh that's right...they can't forget something they didn't CARE about. And now that BLACK WIDOW has decided to go to Malice, they'll all be MOURNING a woman who apparently was NEVER THERE, while the woman, who WAS there for that walking facade, is left to suffer ONCE AGAIN!"

"And where the hell is ALISON!?"

"How do you FIGHT something like this? How can you protect yourself or each other when suddenly you realize you may NEVER know who it is you're actually DEALING with, and that person may decide to betray or ABANDON you!? "


"I think we should GO, Mike. I think we should just take mom, Morgan...you, and Nic...the cats, and just GET OUT OF HERE."

"And I'm telling you...NONE of them better come bothering Karen with ANY of their problems now. NOT ONE. I will provide a "one size fits all" solution with a nice FIRE BALL up their ASSES if they think they can burden her anymore than they already have!"

I know you are upset Blaze, and I cannot argue with some of your points. But I assure you, Ava and Haleigh appreciate what Doc did, they simply cannot speak to that tonight. Tonight a lot of hearts were broken - mine included - but I want all of us to focus on what is important. Running will do us no good. We close ranks, we protect our own, we support our own. And I think that will be easier for you to digest in the morning. But if you need to vent, please do so - you are super cute when you are freaking out.

Mike tried to lighten the mood as best as he could, knowing it was likely futile. He continued.

But you and me are in FULL agreement with one thing. Doc may not be retired, but she for goddamned sure is on HIATUS. She needs to rest, recharge, she needs TLC, and I plan to give that to her. Whether that involves leaving here...and who needs to leave or stay I will leave for another day. But my Doc...she is currently out of office.

Mike lost all attempt at humor at this last statement. His feelings were in danger of spilling over and no one had time for that now. He went silent and started tending to Karen again.

 

[Firebird]

The parthenon- Blaze's apartment

I know you are upset Blaze, and I cannot argue with some of your points. But I assure you, Ava and Haleigh appreciate what Doc did, they simply cannot speak to that tonight. Tonight a lot of hearts were broken - mine included - but I want all of us to focus on what is important. Running will do us no good. We close ranks, we protect our own, we support our own.

Blaze stopped pacing, making her way over to the bar to pour TWO drinks. The one she slammed down, the second one she "nursed" She turned back to Mike and exhaled. She looked a bit calmer. She wasn't moving around as much, and seemed satisfied that the apartment was safe enough....

"Mike, I'm not talking about running scared. I'm talking about being AWARE."

"She's GONE, in more ways than one...and the sooner those people downstairs REALIZE that, the more AWARE of the very real DANGER we're now in they might be."

"For instance...this entire building is outfited with technology, including surveilance devices created and powered by Clandestine Intelligence, HALEIGH'S company. How can ANYONE be comfortable with having ANYTHING to do with her around them, knowing that her very power allows her to tap into these systems?"

"Do we even know WHO our "own" is?"

"Is it BLACK WIDOW, the woman with not enough BODY for her life, and apparently more willing to throw US away in favor of MOMMIE DEAREST? Malice killed an infant once, she made sure that EVERYONE ELSE in Mystech was brought down before she was. She's already killed Haleigh ONCE very recently, what makes her think that Malice would be SATISFIED with her just being there? I don't believe that...nobody does. So what else is it? You'd think that for someone who fought as hard as she did, and who LEAD us as magnificently as she did...that it would have been more difficult, if not IMPOSSIBLE for her to just THROW this....US away. "

"How about Delilah? if you're not walking around kissing the ground Delilah walks on and willing to let her STEP ALL OVER YOU, you won't be in her "good graces." Well, she can forget it. If she hates everyone so much, why doesn't SHE just leave? We've wasted ENOUGH time waiting for her to BELIEVE in anything other than her own hatred. She sees/believes what she wants... and now look at us?

"What about Cass? When she managed to STOP looking at Morgan and I like we both had the bubonic plague, do you think she had a clue that what happened in the war room...what we ALL learned...it was NOT the "Victory girls'" fault? Are we supposed to apologize for THIS too? WE didn't set this in motion. Do you think she can remember that long enough? Or is she too going to blame us for something that impacts US just as much as it does AVA?"

"These people, Mike...they want to tell everyone else how to act, and then when a crisis comes, they do the EXACT OPPOSITE, so you'll PARDON me if I don't feel so inclined to think of THEM as "our own" right now. "

"Right now, MY own is here in this room, Morg, and Nic."

"I think that will be easier for you to digest in the morning. But if you need to vent, please do so - you are super cute when you are freaking out."

Mike tried to lighten the mood as best as he could, knowing it was likely futile. He continued.

Blaze was caught off guard by that last part of Mike's reply. She faltered for a moment, and then scoffed. She made her way back to the bar, to fix MORE drinks.

"Whatever, Mikey. What do you want to drink?"

She said, trying not to let herself smile even a bit at his last comment

"I don't want to digest this. I don't want to digest a sister who would rather be with a souless woman, than with her FAMILY. Look, we can even take Morgan and myself OUT of this equation...this bizarre and twisted family dyanmic."

" She HAS a sister- AVA- who loves her to the ends of the earth and would do anything for her. Morg and I would NEVER take that away from Ava, and I hope she REALIZES that sooner rather than later. Haleigh had EVERYTHING she needed IN THIS BUILDING. She worked and fought HARD for it, and the person we THOUGHT we knew? She deserves ALL of it, and I would use ALL of my fire power to STOP Christopher and Diana from destroying Haleigh's sense of self if I could have!"


"But this person WE saw...HEARD tonight? The changes were MORE than cosmetic, And she just...THREW IT ALL AWAY. I don't want to DIGEST that, Mike. Haleigh from my timeline would have LEVELED this building before betraying her Six family OR her blood family like this!"

"We SHOULDN'T digest this....because that means we're ACCEPTING it. We shouldn't ACCEPT that this woman just dropped this truth bomb on us and then walked out to leave US to deal with the fallout while SHE goes home to mother."

She drinks down quickly

But you and me are in FULL agreement with one thing. Doc may not be retired, but she for goddamned sure is on HIATUS. She needs to rest, recharge, she needs TLC, and I plan to give that to her. Whether that involves leaving here...and who needs to leave or stay I will leave for another day. But my Doc...she is currently out of office.

Mike lost all attempt at humor at this last statement. His feelings were in danger of spilling over and no one had time for that now. He went silent and started tending to Karen again.

"I'll back you on that, 100% this time, and I can sense Morgan's feelings about this...SHE will too. THEY'VE taken ENOUGH of her time, effort and energy. THEY knew how important this issue would be to Karen because it involved her husband, and because she has this....INSTINCT to protect anyone she perceives as a VICTIM of Christopher. And after what she went through with Frost and Talisman..."

" Black Widow is GONE now. The woman we thought we knew may have been a facade to begin with. Not only has she betrayed us, she's left us...this team...in worse shape than it was...and if Talisman should try for Karen again, OR if Malice herself comes calling..."

"...TELL ME AGAIN how we're going to deal with this!? I mean aside from blowing away anyone that tries to attack Karen again."

She said with a mix of anxiety AND anger as she finally came and flopped down next to Karen and Michael.

"Okay...so I told Morg she needed to be back here SOON. 5 more minutes, and I'm going to find her. "

 

[Arsenal]

Blaze was caught off guard by that last part of Mike's reply. She faltered for a moment, and then scoffed. She made her way back to the bar, to fix MORE drinks.

"Whatever, Mikey. What do you want to drink?"

Mike smirked as he responded. Got her!

Scotch, rocks, water glass. Thanks.

"I'll back you on that, 100% this time, and I can sense Morgan's feelings about this...SHE will too. THEY'VE taken ENOUGH of her time, effort and energy. THEY knew how important this issue would be to Karen because it involved her husband, and after what she went through with Frost and Talisman..."

" Black Widow is GONE now. The woman we thought we knew may have been a facade to begin with. Not only has she betrayed us, she's left us...this team...in worse shape than it was...and if Talisman should try for Karen again, OR if Malice herself comes calling..."

"...TELL ME AGAIN how we're going to deal with this!? I mean aside from blowing away anyone that tries to attack Karen again."

She said with a mix of anxiety AND anger as she finally came and flopped down next to Karen and Michael.

"Okay...so I told Morg she needed to be back here SOON. 5 more minutes, and I'm going to find her. "

Mike tosses a huge arm around Blaze and gives her a squeeze. He accepts his Scotch on the rocks and downs about half the glass, swirls it to cool it a bit more and thinks a second.

Give her 10 minutes while we talk a little. I want you to take a second and consider something for me.

Mike takes another swig of his drink, exhales at the exquisite quality and begins again.

Haleigh, among all of us even , has almost no peer in terms of tactics. In particular BATTLE tactics. Blaze, the Six got fucked up and lost Frost against TWO assailants and we had the Birds of Prey there to help. No Enchantrah or Malice or whatever they may have cooked up right now. Just two agents. Sure, we have Nic and Morgan here now, and Alison is available, but right now we are in disarray. You yourself count Ava and Cass as people you are out with. How the hell can we launch a cohesive assault against Malice right now?

Mike took another drink and continued.

I could be thinking in part based on hope here, but I think that Haleigh has a long game planned that gives us a chance to get our shit together. Whether through hatred of her or fear of what comes now that the HC has her, Haleigh has handed us an opportunity to get our shit together. Meanwhile, Malice spends less time in our asses and more time celebrating this loss. If we can use what window she MAY have given us to get in order, then MAYBE we have a shot. If not, who cares if she can hack the systems? By the way, she cut herself off and initiated a new encryption. She COULD blunt force the system likely but by the time she does...we would know and anything else we can acquire will be less secure anyway. Now think, why would she do that? Give away an obvious advantage that the HC would covet? Because she may have betrayed us, but that is not necessarily the same thing as being our enemy. Just a thought.

Mike got up to refill, taking Blaze's now-empty glass with him to do the same for her...

 

[Firebird]

The Parthenon- Blaze's apartment

Mike tosses a huge arm around Blaze and gives her a squeeze. He accepts his Scotch on the rocks and downs about half the glass, swirls it to cool it a bit more and thinks a second.

Give her 10 minutes while we talk a little. I want you to take a second and consider something for me.

Mike takes another swig of his drink, exhales at the exquisite quality and begins again.

Blaze gently pets both cats, who are laying leisurely on Karen's lap. Karen has fallen asleep by now, and looks so calm and peaceful. Blaze wants it to stay that way for her as long as possible.

"Okay...."

She said as she began to try and settle her flame filled heart.

Haleigh, among all of us even , has almost no peer in terms of tactics. In particular BATTLE tactics. Blaze, the Six got fucked up and lost Frost against TWO assailants and we had the Birds of Prey there to help. No Enchantrah or Malice or whatever they may have cooked up right now. Just two agents. Sure, we have Nic and Morgan here now, and Alison is available, but right now we are in disarray. You yourself count Ava and Cass as people you are out with. How the hell can we launch a cohesive assault against Malice right now?

Mike took another drink and continued.

"You're the second person who has implied that Talisman and that other one....Fathom...might be connected to Malice and Enchantrah. If that's true, and Cameron certainly seems to believe that it is, that's all the more reason we need to find Talisman and eliminate her."

"We haven't seen Malice just yet. We KNOW she'll make herself known when she wants to be seen. TALISMAN has already made herself known. Shouldn't we be going after what we SEE?"

"But you're right, we ARE in disarray! What do you think I was pointing to in my earlier points in response to your "Look after our own..." comment? How many months have passed since the Blue Moon? "

"When you talk about the Six getting FUCKED UP? Try the PURIFIERS. We weren't exactly COHESIVE then either. The Birds of Prey were there to help THEN too, and it was...an eye opening, HUMBLING thing. "

"But you know what? The thing that left us so vulnerable was still persisting, the divisions, the lines, the CRACKS, and many of them formed in the shockwaves of the fallout from the Blue Moon. We stopped Circe from destroying the world...but WE were destroyed in a way."

"People make MISTAKES, Mike. BIG ones sometimes. That doesn't give ONE PERSON the right to hold an entire team HOSTAGE the way she has for MONTHS. AGAIN I ask, If she hates this team so much...why didnt...why DOESN'T she just LEAVE? They blame Morgan for leaving the earth...Delilah SHOULD have left because it's easier for her to believe in her hatred and bitterness than anything that's actually HAPPENING. "

"I admit that I was wrong about Delilah becoming the Justicer in this timeline, but I will FOREVER disagree with Cameron on this notion that we all should've just let her say/do whatever she wanted, no matter how out of the way it was because of what she'd been through."

"She shouldve been placed on leave of absence, SOMEWHERE ELSE, and not allowed to return until everyone could face her, and she them. Would YOU want to be anywhere near the people you beleived ruined your life, "stole" your baby?"

"We're a MESS because nobody knew what to do, and all SHE wanted to do was PISS ALL OVER everyone. Why is it just NOW that anyone is realizign just how BROKEN this team is when it's BEEN like this for MONTHS? Why is it that the problems and traumas that anyone ELSE on this team has faced- past or present, suddenly are IRREVELANT, and only SHE was allowed to operate in an altered state, at the expense of EVERYONE, INCLUDING Cameron?"

Blaze may have been unhappy with him for specific reasons right now, but she saw how much, how FAR he went for Delilah. It was not unlike what Karen had done for Ava and Haleigh. What kind of TOLL had it taken on him, and now THIS with Haleigh?!

"Our so called LEADERS were not at full strength, NOBODY was. What about some of those OTHER cracks- Ava and Haleigh? Well we know who was trying to fix THOSE."

"We get bushwacked by psycho Shaw, and ursula the sea witch, Frost is used, abused and killed AGAIN, and Karen nearly DIES. NOW THIS [Haleigh]!?"

"Gawd, Mike...I don't know how to answer your question about how to launch a cohesive assault against Malice, because...I don't know that we CAN right now. I'm STILL stuck on your "look after our own" comment because...I don't think that inclination to take care of each other is there anymore. What happened in the war room tonight didn't bring us together, It drove us into seperate corners, and we're no better for it."

"I think...to answer your question...we first have to know who is real, who we can TRUST. Haleigh is gone. Ava has left...and until we know her status...can we even assume that she's coming back? That's two down. "

::SIGH::

"I'm not out with Cass, I'm not even MAD at her. SHE looked like SHE was out with Me and Morgan. "

I could be thinking in part based on hope here, but I think that Haleigh has a long game planned that gives us a chance to get our shit together. Whether through hatred of her or fear of what comes now that the HC has her, Haleigh has handed us an opportunity to get our shit together. Meanwhile, Malice spends less time in our asses and more time celebrating this loss. If we can use what window she MAY have given us to get in order, then MAYBE we have a shot. If not, who cares if she can hack the systems? By the way, she cut herself off and initiated a new encryption. She COULD blunt force the system likely but by the time she does...we would know and anything else we can acquire will be less secure anyway. Now think, why would she do that? Give away an obvious advantage that the HC would covet? Because she may have betrayed us, but that is not necessarily the same thing as being our enemy. Just a thought.

Mike got up to refill, taking Blaze's now-empty glass with him to do the same for her...

Blaze fell silent as she pondered what Mike ws saying. The revelation that haleigh had cut herself off from the systems in this building AND initiated a new encryption...that was SURPRISING, but it also brought some sense of relief for Blaze regarding some of the internal security concerns. While she still couldn't really wrap her head around this woman being her SISTER, one thing that was clear in her mind and her heart was - DESPITE her being DIANA'S daughter, Firebird wasn't afraid OF Black Widow, she was afraid of what SHE might do when the time came for them to FIGHT. If Black Widow was to be their ENEMY now...they would still KNOW her just as she did them. Blaze wouldn't hesitate to strike Haleigh down to protect her family OR the team from her AND her mother....but what about the REST of them? Would she branded a bitch for doing what THEY ALL should be willing to do? Some of them have had to strike down their own parents before!

Is this what it was going to come to, or was Mike ON to something? Was it more than a little HOPE on his part? Was Black Widow NOT just giving herself over to Malice to revel in the "Malice" in her OWN soul?? Even ALISON seemed remarkably CALM about Haleigh's declaration of going to Malice and HC- at least on the SURFACE. Was this...some HORRIBLE but necessary strategy to buy them TIME to try and GET IT TOGETHER!? Blaze was USUALLY very keen and perceptive about people, but everything from the Blue Moon until NOW had left her at less than full strength, just like the others.

"Mikey...maybe I'm expecting the worst, because it's what I knew for so long before I came HERE. My anxiety has been high ever since the Frost caper...and now, to learn about this NEW page in the demented Victory family book...and to see Haleigh look and act like she'd been caught up in some "Stepford Wives" sequel in the war room? I'm trying to make sense of this, and I just CAN'T and so I'm scrambling to try to protect what few that I feel like I can....who will actually LET me."

" But now...listening to you, I really do have to ask - what am *I* missing right now that has allowed me to believe the worst about people I had such good relationships with before? Is it my anxiety? PTSD? Or am I...do I just NOT have the belief that I'm screaming about anymore?! I'm usually very perceptive, and a good reader of people, but I'm not even certain of MYSELF right now..."

She leans over, resting her head on Mike's shoulder.

"We can't kid ourselves. We're NOT going to succeed if EVERYONE that is involved is not on the same page. We don't all have to be friends...but if we can't believe in this group and that we're stronger TOGETHER, Can you honestly say, given how things have been, up till tonight, that we have a chance in HELL to do ANYTHING!?"

 

[Persephone]

Alison: Ava, it's okay. I knew you didn't mean those things. In a moment of pain, when everything...including SELF is being blown apart, no one THINKS about what they're saying...

Ava shut her eyes. She felt terrible for the things she said to both Alison AND Karen. In literally moments her world was torn apart when she thought Haleigh had died....then she was alive and dropped the biggest bomb since Hiroshima. It was too much, even for Ava to calmly handle.

Alison: ...and believe me when I tell you, it gave me NO pleasure to see you in that moment, for you to have to LEARN. I didn't want to take anything from you, and NOTHING about your relationship with Haleigh will change.

Deep down she knew this. She really did. But it still stung knowing that Morgan and Blaze were Haleigh's biological sisters. Shaking her head to herself, Ava looked away from Alison still bitter about that particular part.

Alison: Ava, I'm not going to patronize you and say "you're in shock and don't know what you're saying." This choice you've made, is part of why I'm here now. You know I can't let you do this.

"I don't need your approval, Alison. I just need your support."

Ava said evenly, looking back at her friend. Alison took Ava's hand and in a flash, she saw the horrible moments of herself and Cameron finding Haleigh dead. But this time, they went STRAIGHT for the Hellfire Club and attacked it. It ended in bloodshed with the six dead.

Alison: That's just ONE of the more distinct futures that I ensured did not become OURS. Diana had declard, long ago, that when the truce was ended, it would be at the hand of a member of the Six. She was targeting Delilah and Cameron, and WOULD have succeeded in pushing both of them over the edge, but HALEIGH RAN to her after she learned the truth...HER truth. As I told Haleigh...there has been movement. The pieces...the remnants of the vast, terrible power that we once stood against, have been slowly coming back together, looking for a means to close the vacuum. For a time, Diana was content to simply reign over the Hellfire Club. She was the last woman standing when Mystech fell. But that has CHANGED now, due in no small part to Haleigh confronting her about the TRUTH. THEIR TRUTH.

Ava withdrew her hand.

"Wouldn't YOU have done the same thing Alison? I know what you want to do to Kelly Shaw, and I know it's taking everything in you NOT to storm Hellfire Club and kill her yourself. You can't blame what has happened on Haleigh."

Alison: Don't misunderstand me. I'm not BLAMING this ON Haleigh, how could I!? if ANYONE is to blame, it's CHRISTOPHER. that arrogant fool didn't even bother to comprehend what kind of events, LONG REACHING events, that would reshape time threads for MORE than one generation, would be set in motion when he decided to include MALICE in his machinations. Haleigh had every right to face Malice with this information. I just...WISH that when she left Karen, she'd come to ME BEFORE she went to Sheena Island, so that we might have done the VERY THING she's always believed we were meant to do with my visions....AVOID the worst cast scenario.

"She would of gone anyway."

It didn't matter whether Alison told her what would happen due to her choices or not, if Haleigh's family was threatened, she was going to do everything in her power to stop it. Even if it meant dancing with the devil. That was just who Haleigh was. The Six didn't understand that--some of them probably saw it as a betrayal. But Haleigh was going there to bide them time. To get them to finally come together after almost a year of being fractured. To become strong enough TO fight the Inner Circle. She was going there to save them from the vision Alison just showed her. She was more selfless than anyone realized....more selfless than Ava. Ava's plans were purely selFISH.

Alison: Ava, Haleigh is going to Malice because she KNOWS what's coming. She's SEEN glimpses of the hellfire club's changes recently...they are STRONGER than we are right now, and I confirmed to her what she suspected. WE are NOT READY. She's GOING to Malice to...to BUY us time. The OTHERS won't understand this...but YOU do. You came from ao timeline, from a team...a FAMILY where STRATEGY was a KEY component of your success and your power.

At least Alison understood. She was a strategist and understood the bigger picture. She GOT it. And Ava was grateful that someone did....because the six needed that above anything else right now. They NEEDED Alison more than ever.

Alison: I KNOW what you're going to do, and I won't stop you. But before you go...we need to go over some things. Let's go inside and talk...

Ava looked at her friend, knowing then that Alison in fact didn't approve of her decision, but DID support her. And that's all Ava wanted. Alison's opinion meant more to her than anything, and she knew that if anyone understood Ava's position, it was her.

Gently guiding Aslan back into his stall, she gave her horse one last pat before following Alison back to Aerie.

 

[Prophet]

The Parthenon Hotel - Parking Garage

I'm....not so sure about that. Alison and I...we had a mindset similar to that, for a long time. It certainly factored into why we chose to handle Delilah's life threatening crisis the way that we did....it turns out we made a terrible mistake, and look how long it's taken ...look at the lines that have ALREADY been drawn because of that. THAT is part of the reason why you and I were at each other's throats mere hours after my return!

Something we're GOING to have to address amongst ourselves, Cameron, is....ARE we the best? ARE we the most qualified? CAN we come together? DO we even trust...CARE for each other as we should? Or have the "cliques" that have formed taken precedence?

What happened tonight, and all the related incidents, can definitely be attributed to us all being BROKEN, but ALSO a LACK of communication, and the trust, the COURAGE to say things that need to be said. NOT using the truth as a weapon...but speaking FROM truth...and LOVE, if that's even here in this group anymore.

"I have to believe that this is our destiny, Morgan. I'm never going to falter from that. Even if I find myself wrong in the worst way...we're in far too deep to turn back now. They destroyed our lives in the worst ways possible. All the times we've been saved...all of the divine intervention on our behalf..the survivor's guilt alone is enough to make any one of us want to jump off a ledge, but I have to believe it's for a reason. I have to believe that the gifts we've been given despite our own traumas has been for SOMETHING. We've all ran at some point from this...and where did we wind up..back here, on the frontlines..."

[thinking]

"But I agree...our personal relationships have taken precedence. We've been misguided, we've hurt each other just as badly as the other side has at times, but that's FAMILY. We each want the best for the other...if only to prove to ourselves that it's possible for somebody to be happy, even if it's not us. That's why we fight the way we do, that's why we get so mad...but it's also why we would kill for the other...that's why we would destroy the world for one another, and it's what's kept us all alive. One look across time and space, and this far along? With these circumstances...we are the only timeline where everybody is still in tact. That means something."

<< She couldn't have imagined him saying...ASKING this of her before. But here they were...only THREE founding members left! This was different even from the period leading up to Master mold, and on through the Malice/Blackout assault on Illustra, when "The Six" had basically become "The THREE". Because those three: Black Widow, MorningStar and Foxfire KNEW they were all each other HAD, and they did JUST what Cameron was wanting to do with Morgan now.>>

WE have to be here, Cameron. Neither one of us gets to leave this time. And it's not JUST the two of us. We also have your sister, my best friend, ALISON, who gathered us together in the first place. She's here NOW and from the look of it, she's not going to be leaving anytime soon.

<< She holds Cameron's hand, and she LOOKS at their joined hands. Again, a RARE moment.>>

I enter this pact with you now.

I'd be LYING if I told you that I had the certainty that you're projecting in your voice, BUT there are people here that I....WE...need to be here for.

I've lead before...I'll do it again. We'll do it TOGETHER.

<< She looks Cameron in the eye.>>

But this pact...it can't be just an emotional moment here and now, it has to be binding GOING FORWARD. No egos, no territorial behavior over this person or that person...we HAVE to act like we've LEARNED something from BEFORE, and do BETTER now. We also HAVE to find Ava and bring her back! she's PART of that hemorrhaging I spoke of earlier. We CAN'T let her be swept away in this flow of blood and pain, we have a duty to her just as we do to every other person in this group.

"It's not just the two of us..you're right about that...but we do have to look at things politically for a moment. We have always represented two sides of the same coin. This is about joining forces, combining our power...combining our allies and moving forward. The people that you can't reach right now...are the people that I can. And vice versa. I know it sounds a little crass, but you were right in your assessment...we've been divided for a long time...and it's time to take the two that represent those two sides...you and I...and figure out some kind of balance, some way that we can use the clout that we have in order to make things more equal...to give them a voice, that is just as important as the rest of us. We need to figure out a way to lead them to water...AND make them drink..."

<< Morgan heard the sincerity in his voice. She believed him, and Haleigh was proven right, they WERE "kissing and making up"...>>

Cameron...<< sigh>>

<< Morgan bowed her head for a moment, as tears fell from her watery eyes.>>

...I love you too. I'm sorry for the terror, the pain, and everything else I've subjected you to.

Madonna once said "I only hurt the ones that I love..." but...outside of a particular context...that lyric doesnt ring true. I don't want to hurt my loved ones anymore than I have - whether by accident or by design.

"Thank you for saying that...and I agree. I'm done hurting my family."

<< she retrives a hankerchief from a small stepping disc that opens nearby, and dabs her violet eyes.>>

No....I'm not. I'm not okay in the slightest.

But....I'm trying VERY HARD right now to apply the coping skills that my mother and Ororo have taught me.

<< She said with a noticeable tremble that returned to her tone.>>

Earlier i spoke of tributaries... well here's a few. We were planning to leave the Parthenon tonight, and take up residence at a brownstone that Nicolas was providing. Myself, Blaze, my mother, Nicolas, Mike and Cass. Blaze and my mom are both very upset, and Nicolas offered this as a sensible solution until we could discuss the issues of "Frost" and Kelly Shaw.

And speaking of my mother...I find out she's been helping Persephone and Black Widow, only to have BOTH cases BLOW UP in her face? She extended herself to great risk to try to help "Frost", only for it to be a twisted "trojan horse", and she was nearly murdered...TWICE. But even during all of that, she STILL kept treating Haleigh. HALEIGH!


Haleigh...is my SISTER....ALL THIS TIME...and never in my WILDEST DREAMS did I imagine HER to be my sister. I don't even know how to wrap my mind around it!

But I guess NOW it doesn't really matter. It certainly doesn't matter to HER because she's removed herself and is giving herself over to Malice. My father is no prize...he's one of the worst people that ever lived, and he SCARRED me, my sisters AND my mother. I don't think HE ever imagined what he was setting in motion when he decided to encompass DIANA in his demented machinations, but somehow...even from beyond the grave, he's managed to hurt ALL of us again, and SHE'S adding to it!

My mother was helping Haleigh, Cameron...EXTENSIVELY...and THIS is how chose to USE that help and support? by simply...LETTING GO and betraying ALL of us like this, KNOWING that the next time we see her...she'd likely have the ADVANTAGE of an emotional handicap OVER us!?

<< Morgan bellowed as she flailed her arms up>>

Maybe I'm going about this the wrong way! Maybe I was mistaken to agree with your pact. Maybe it's TOO LATE for everything else!

:: He had never had this open and honest of a conversation with Morgan. She had never opened up like this to him and vice versa. It was because of Haleigh's revelation that this had been able to happen, and Cameron was fighting that thought as soon as he thought it. He was feeling a little more center, a little more resolved. Despite their inherent differences and volitale relationship throughout the years, both Morgan and Cameron were highlighting something about themselves that made them who they were - each other. Without the other one, be it by devious means or otherwise, they wouldn't be who they were. They were each other's hardest lessons in human form, and the fact that despite all of that, they could have a meeting of the minds meant something big, that they both weren't aware of. ::

"Trust me...never in MY wildest dreams did I ever think I could be madly in love with a Victory sister...but here we are."

:: Squeezing her hand. ::

"When it comes to your mother...I admit...I'm embarrassed in what I said and how I treated her...but to see her how she was during the Frost caper...and then to later find out that...that it came from somebody who would be my mother...well..I think I felt a little bit of what Haleigh might be feeling right now, of how you feel about Christopher. I was cold to Frost...but..and really Morgan, I know it's no excuse..but I was trying to protect Blaze. You remember how volitale she was...and you weren't there, so please just try and trust what I am telling you...everybody was acting insane...just not like themselves..and it seemed like they wanted to save Jasmine so much, that they weren't looking at things clearly. I didn't want your sister or your mother...to lose Jasmine and make Blaze feel like she might want to jump right back through that Siege. I didn't want Jasmine giving her any ideas.. convince her that things could be better...I..."

:: He looked at Morgan seriously. ::

"I know it was wrong how I handled it, but just please know...outside of all of this...this conversation and pact...I really do love Firebird..maybe to a level that you don't understand...but I wasn't about to let anything take her from this world...or YOU."

"I know you want to protect your mom...but she's a big girl...and I know that she anticipated at least Ava's reaction. Haleigh is somebody that Ava has been able to anchor her dual identity here on Earth with. She doesn't trust easily, she isn't open...she's very private. Ava will ALWAYS do what needs to be done for this team...I've stood by her side in battle, I've held her hand when she's lost countless lives. I've done as much as I possibly can to show her how much I value her. She has a right to be upset...and Karen is smart enough of a woman to know where her words came from. Those two will be fine..."

"When it comes to Haleigh...as mad as I am right now, can you imagine? The woman you enlisted to help you figure this all out ends up being the ex-wife of your newly discovered father...and the mother of your newfound sister? I know Haleigh better than anybody on the planet..she REALLY does respect Karen...for her to even WORK with Karen on herself...it speaks volumes. Haleigh switching sides doesn't make sense to either of us. But...we both know...deep down, just like me...and everything I've gone through to be here...there HAS to be something inside of Haleigh that thinks she's protecting us. She's never loved anybody like us..you know that. That love is real and she's moved mountains to prove it...for her to stand in front of us all and denounce it to pledge allegiance to Malice? That can't be it...and while we can't waste time trying to figure that out anymore...just try and take comfort that Haleigh DOES love your mother, that she DOES value her...personally I think she's just utterly embarrassed and shamed. She's the daughter of the people who have done the worst things to us...where do you go from there?"

"It's NEVER TOO LATE."

<< Morgan became more agitated>>

I AM sorceress supreme! I have the means...maybe I should just TELEPORT Haleigh to LIMBO and let her find OUR father so they can be in HELL together FOREVER. I could even send MALICE there to join them! PROBLEM SOLVED, for ALL of us!

<< She said with such BITTERNESS...it was clear that the stress, and shock of all of this had gotten to her more than she could have acknowledged, but CAMERON was seeing it now.>>

I AM Sorceress Supreme. I'm supposed to protect my family above all else, and I CAN! I can STOP this! ALL of it! I'll send the entire HELLFIRE MANSION to Limbo!

"Remember that Malice idea...because I'm truly on board for that. And I feel every single one of those things right now. If I weren't a better man...I'd LET you do it...but you're not JUST Sorceress Supreme...just like you are wanting people to remember about your mother...you are a WOMAN. You are a HUMAN woman who has love and family and friends...and lives on EARTH...lives in this world. I don't know how you do it...if I could wield the power you do...I would have destroyed the world seven times over...but that's why I never will..So call on your strength, Morgan...call on what centers you HERE on Earth."

"I promise you Morgan.. despite my flighty past...despite all of my flaws..we can do this. They will not win this war. I'm not my sister...I can't predict the future...and I can't make you trust me. But as I sit here...the only thing that calls to me...outside of my anger...my pain...my sorrow...is the fire to protect us...and the realization that you and I together...on the same page...is something that no timeline...no seer...no MALICE will ever see coming or know how to destroy.."

:: He hugged Morgan. ::

"We can be the change we wish to see in the world...or whatever garbage Ghandi said....are you in?"

 

[Arsenal]

" But now...listening to you, I really do have to ask - what am *I* missing right now that has allowed me to believe the worst about people I had such good relationships with before? I'm usually very perceptive, and a good reader of people, but I'm not even certain of MYSELF right now..."

She leans over, resting her head on Mike's shoulder.

"We can't kid ourselves. We're NOT going to succeed if EVERYONE that is involved is not on the same page. We don't all have to be friends...but if we can't believe in this group and that we're stronger TOGETHER, Can you honestly say, given how things have been, up till tonight, that we have a chance in HELL to do ANYTHING!?"

Mike kisses Blaze's forehead and take a new swig of his drink.

Look, none of us is infallible. And we often try to pretend we are, or THINK that we are, and we DEFINITELY expect too much of each other. Why do you think Doc is putting herself out for anyone who needs it? Why do you think my - what is it - FLATSCAN ass picked up a gun and some kevlar and trained you fuckers 5 -10 hours a day to TRY to help? Because we are ALL scarred, all damaged, all trying our best to make it because you have been for so long the only thing in the way of...EVERYTHING being fucked up. And we have all endured enough to make most people crawl into a corner and die. I know that to be true.

New swig, new thought.

You need to remember what you have done and focus on what made that successful and fucking do it. Since I have been here, the Six is undefeated by its actual FOES. No, the biggest threat to this group is each other forgetting that no matter how special you are, you are not infallible. When this group sticks together, they cut Diana's head off, they put an Egyptian God of Destruction out of this dimension, they destroy one of the most powerful malevolent corporations the world has ever known. If you can remember that and forget the small shit, you can get off the mat and at least make sure that Malice does not look forward to seeing us. That, combined with Haleigh's move tonight (I hope) and the emergence of the other team might make a difference. The question is, can you all focus on what is important? I am not including me because the likelihood of me turning the tide is nil - I am just a guy. But any one of YOU can be the one to turn this shit around.

 

[Harbinger]

Minerva's Mansion- Executive study

"I don't need your approval, Alison. I just need your support."

You know you were going to HAVE that support from me. Why do you think YOU were the first person I appeared before? Why do you think I came BACK when I did?

:: Ava knew, she understood...and that would be their starting point for the next conversation as they went back to Minerva's mansion.::

::Inside the sprawling compound, they are now in Harbinger's executive study, and as it has been many times before, Alison sits at her large oak desk, in that throne like chair, with Ava seated across from her. The slow, rhythmic ticking of the large, curiously designed grandfather clock plays in the background of their meeting.::

:: They begin to discuss what is coming for Ava due to her choice, and Alison offers her some relevant information to allow her to better navigate. She even provides her with information divined from her most RECENT "view" of certain events, so that Ava can carefully and SMARTLY plan her next move.::

:: Finally, she REMINDS Ava that she knows the goddess needs some time. She will carry word to the others at the Parthenon that Ava is safe, and needs "space", and has offered Ava to stay at Minerva's Aerie until she's ready to make her next move. She also reminds Ava that there's no place on this earth that she can go, that ALISON won't be able to "SEE", and as she takes this time, if at any point she needs HELP, needs to "check in"...ANYTHING, Alison will be watching...and waiting. Ava will ALWAYS have her very own "guardian angel....guardian WITCH" ::

:: But as they come to the close of their conversation, there is ONE thing in particular that Alison needs to address from earlier....::

::FLASH!::

"Wouldn't YOU have done the same thing Alison? I know what you want to do to Kelly Shaw, and I know it's taking everything in you NOT to storm Hellfire Club and kill her yourself.

Ava...you're right, I DO want Kelly Shaw DEAD. But I don't need to go to the Hellfire Club to get her. Just like MALICE, I KNOW the strategy of letting PREY lead ITSELF to the slaughter.

I served as the Six's tactician before...and believe me when I tell you...that is still very much apart of who I am. Kelly inserted herself here. She has attacked Karen...tried to kill her, TWICE. Karen has...and always WILL be more of a mother to me than ANY version of Kelly could EVER be.

:: She balls her fist as she continues. Ava would note the cold, brutal tone in her voice as she referred to her "MOTHER" as PREY!?::

But...ANY version of Kelly that comes into MY yard? Is "UNFINISHED BUSINESS..."

She wanted to make herself known, and so she stalked and attacked Karen. By her own admission, it was...an "investigation" she was carrying out. If she was THAT curious about what Shadow Weaver was capable of...imagine how she must feel about "CHILDREN" she didn't even have in her own native time?

She'll come to me, Ava. It LITERALLY is just a matter of time. And whatever she may know...she will LEARN that you do NOT tempt the spider in the center of her WEB.

Cameron will be coming to me, SOON, to discuss this. And once again...I will have to be the bitch...or whatever else someone on that team decides to call me. I love my brother, but I will NOT support him in his desired course of action regarding Shaw. She is a THREAT and the moment she VIOLATED the lingering essence of Frost for her own purposes, and then attacked KAREN? ALL bets were off. I WILL endorse Karen's cries for VENGEANCE, and I will see that she HAS IT. I will see that this woman REGRETS coming here.

Cameron doesn't know...he can't understand because of the scars he bears from Witchfire's abuse....abuse that...I...left him to endure when my own emerging precognition nearly fractured my mind, and drove me away from our home.

He has this...need...this HOPE. But I don't. I "SEE" things and PEOPLE for what they are...and ONE monster of a mother is ENOUGH for ANY number of lifetimes.

:: Sighing, Alison calms a bit. Ava could see that she was not the only one dealing with something deeply personal right now, and the Talisman issue was, as Morgan put it, a TRIBUTARY, to tonight's horrific developments and revelations::

Ava, if I had been able to PERCEIVE Talisman BEFORE she got close enough to Karen...i would have dealt with her then and there, but she..."slipped" past me. Something about how she came to be here, and the nature of her own powers, which are ALSO rooted in the gift of sight, MASKED her from my detection for some time now. That element of surprise is no longer available to her.

I know you care about Karen...and SHE cares for you! She knows you didn't mean what you said back in the War Room. She's a doctor, and a truly gifted one, who also happens to be a MOTHER, and she's dealt with all kinds of patients. I KNOW you two will be okay.

I hope that you will extend the same support to me that I'm giving you now, and if there's a need...if Shadow Weaver or Cameron himself need helpn regarding this monster, and I'm somehow UNABLE to help them...that you will step in. YOU know what it is to waver in the presence of a dangerous foe, and what kind of consequences that can bring. They HATE me for the way I do things...but sometimes that's what's necessary. I KNOW I can trust you to pick up...where I left off, IF something should happen to me.

 

[Persephone]

Moving inside Minerva's Mansion to Alison's executive suite, Ava took a seat after grabbing herself a cup of herbal tea. Hemlock sounded much more appealing, but she needed a clear head, and to frankly calm herself down. Taking a sip of the hot liquid, Alison immediately opened up about Kelly. It was a touchy subject all around....Ava understood Alison's position. The woman was evil and subjected Alison and Cameron to SO much. She was NOT a mother, that was for certain. She was their incubator. BUT, on the same token, she understood where Cameron came from. Stavros was a complicated man with a shady past. His direct involvement and partnership with MysTech put him on the forefront of everything that MADE MysTech successful. He was power hungry and ruthless. He would KILL anyone that got in his way. He was a Cassadine through and through. BUT he was also a loving father. There was one thing that Stavros had a weakness for and it was Ava. He adored her--worshiped her. Ava was his pride and joy, and she knew that throughout her whole life. It was the reason WHY she was so protective of him when The Six--particularly Alycia--was so dead set on ending his life. So while Ava listened to Alison voice how she wanted Kelly DEAD, she knew it was far more complicated than that.

Alison: Cameron will be coming to me, SOON, to discuss this. And once again...I will have to be the bitch...or whatever else someone on that team decides to call me. I love my brother, but I will NOT support him in his desired course of action regarding Shaw. She is a THREAT and the moment she VIOLATED the lingering essence of Frost for her own purposes, and then attacked KAREN? ALL bets were off. I WILL endorse Karen's cries for VENGEANCE, and I will see that she HAS IT. I will see that this woman REGRETS coming here.
Cameron doesn't know...he can't understand because of the scars he bears from Witchfire's abuse....abuse that...I...left him to endure when my own emerging precognition nearly fractured my mind, and drove me away from our home. He has this...need...this HOPE. But I don't. I "SEE" things and PEOPLE for what they are...and ONE monster of a mother is ENOUGH for ANY number of lifetimes.

Ava placed her cup down on the desk and sighed.

"Alison....I understand your need for vengeance. I understand that you don't think of Kelly as your mother. And you have EVERY RIGHT to feel that way after everything she did to you, Cameron, AND Karen. HOWEVER, I understand where Cameron is coming from as well. He sees hope....as naive as it...he sees his mother and he wants to help her. I can empathize with that because of Stavros. Everyone wanted him dead, but I saw the GOOD in him....I saw the LOVE he had for me. So while I get where Cameron is coming from, I also KNOW that Kelly had no love for either one of you. She was never a mother....she was never a caretaker. She gave NO reason for either you or Cameron to support her or help her. But I know Cameron will despite all that....because he's Cameron...he's a good guy. He tries to see the best in everyone, and I think deep down he knows there is no "best" in Kelly....but it's just too hard for him to grasp. Especially after loosing Haleigh tonight."

Sighing, Ava hated that Cameron was so hurt by all of this. That it was a one/two punch he didn't see coming. But he was tough...he would get through it. He would understand what needed to be done, even if he disagreed with it. Even if he HATED them for it.

Alison: I hope that you will extend the same support to me that I'm giving you now, and if there's a need...if Shadow Weaver or Cameron himself need helpn regarding this monster, and I'm somehow UNABLE to help them...that you will step in. YOU know what it is to waver in the presence of a dangerous foe, and what kind of consequences that can bring. They HATE me for the way I do things...but sometimes that's what's necessary. I KNOW I can trust you to pick up...where I left off, IF something should happen to me.

"You know I support you AND Cameron 110%. I know he might hate me for it, but I will do what needs to be done regarding Kelly. I won't let her hurt him. He's been through too much....he lost too much...."

Looking Alison dead in the eyes now.

"Which means he's NOT loosing you, so don't entertain those time threads or visions. You're not going anywhere Alison. I won't let anything happen to YOU either. Trust me."

Alison knew exactly what Ava was talking about. It was what brought them to this moment. Reaching across the desk, Ava took Alison's hand within hers. Her eyes were glassy with tears.

"Thank you...I don't think i've told you enough...but thank you. I wouldn't of gotten through tonight without you."

Tears dropped onto Ava's cheeks.

"And just know, whatever happens....I love you. You're just as much of a sister to me as Haleigh is."

Ava stood now, moving around the desk and embracing Alison in a hug. She held her tight and let the moment just linger. Let the last bit of comfort last for as long as she could.

"I have to go."

 

[Spellbinder]

The Parthenon- Parking Garage

"I have to believe that this is our destiny, Morgan. I'm never going to falter from that. Even if I find myself wrong in the worst way...we're in far too deep to turn back now. They destroyed our lives in the worst ways possible. All the times we've been saved...all of the divine intervention on our behalf..the survivor's guilt alone is enough to make any one of us want to jump off a ledge, but I have to believe it's for a reason. I have to believe that the gifts we've been given despite our own traumas has been for SOMETHING. We've all ran at some point from this...and where did we wind up..back here, on the frontlines..."

<< Was he ever RIGHT on that! Nearly all of them had or came close to retreating for one reason or another, but they returned. And of the members OUTSIDE of the original founders, only the ones that were TRULY connected to their destiny, remained. This included Delilah, Nicolas, Ava, and Cass. Morgan was not so certain of much at this moment, and either was Blaze, but Cameron's belief, his "FAITH" (for lack of a better word) in their destiny, and the idea of The Six as a group, a FAMILY was coming across so strongly now. Was he PROJECTING this via his own empathy to try and bolster what he sensed was a wavering in Morgan?>>

<< If it were, it was a truly creative, and genuine way of him trying to reassure her, but if not, then it was clearly a part of her that wasn't willing to let HER totally give up, and that there was reason to still have hope, even now in seemingly immobilizing DARKNESS that had surrounded them.>>

[thinking]

"But I agree...our personal relationships have taken precedence. We've been misguided, we've hurt each other just as badly as the other side has at times, but that's FAMILY. We each want the best for the other...if only to prove to ourselves that it's possible for somebody to be happy, even if it's not us. That's why we fight the way we do, that's why we get so mad...but it's also why we would kill for the other...that's why we would destroy the world for one another, and it's what's kept us all alive. One look across time and space, and this far along? With these circumstances...we are the only timeline where everybody is still in tact. That means something."

<< When did HE become so...AWARE? Morgan looked at him rather astonished for a moment! as the glow from the violet hued, slowly spinning pentagram beneath them illuminated his face and those eyes of his. >>

<< HE made it sound like he'd ALWAYS understood, even as he had been a participant in some of the worst individual/family moments of this team. But he had grown, changed, as had SHE. it was another example that showed how he WAS committed to this team, this family. The very last sentence about how this timeline remained consistent, with mostly everyone in tact, while so many others that they'd seen were utterly dystopian was also telling, and it resonated with Morgan. >>

This is also one of the timelines that is home to one of the points of the dark trinity....

<< she said thoughtfully, but even Darkchilde's timeline had never really recovered from that devastating battle between the masters of evil and the original dire wraiths of legend. Darkchilde was the sole survivor, and she resided in LIMBO, having transcended her human form to take on a form composed of pure magickal energy! She was the CRONE in the the trinity, the point of POWER and wisdom. Spellbinder hadn't allowed herself to ponder if SHE was the MAIDEN or the MOTHER. But after the dream time event, she'd come to suspect....to FEEL that she was the "MOTHER" - representing ripeness, sexuality, fulfilment, (newfound) stability, power (though not on par w/ the CRONE) and life represented by the full moon; this had to be why she was inspired, DRIVEN to create her sanctum sanctorum, and while she was focused on honing her magickal powers to be able to replicate the feats she accomplished in the dream time!>>

...why else would we have the benefit...the SUPPORT of Ororo, the other goddesses, including Hecate, Verna and Hazel?

"It's not just the two of us..you're right about that...but we do have to look at things politically for a moment. We have always represented two sides of the same coin. This is about joining forces, combining our power...combining our allies and moving forward. The people that you can't reach right now...are the people that I can. And vice versa. I know it sounds a little crass, but you were right in your assessment...we've been divided for a long time...and it's time to take the two that represent those two sides...you and I...and figure out some kind of balance, some way that we can use the clout that we have in order to make things more equal...to give them a voice, that is just as important as the rest of us. We need to figure out a way to lead them to water...AND make them drink..."

<< Again, he made it sound so simple. But in truth, this was not an overreach on his part. The trinity itself was about multi-faceted beings and repreation. The same principal could apply here in their collaboration and co-leadership of the Six. One didn't have to be all things to all members anymore, the two of them could work together in tandem, and help to close gaps. Without even realizing it, Morgan found herself going along with him on this journey of an idea...agreeing with him at least in theory.>>

"Thank you for saying that...and I agree. I'm done hurting my family."

The same. Enough is enough. But it can't JUST be us. There is division that MUST be addressed, and bridged. You know what I'm speaking to. I remember...years ago, when I expelled you from the Six. There were certainly reasons at that time that would have WARRANTED it , but ultimately that was not what you deserved. It's another regret that I have regarding my treatment of you.

Everyone deserves a chance to COME BACK from mistakes that they made. EVERYONE, and it's time that anybody else that has BEEF on this team with someone or OTHERS, understood that.

Expulsion should be reserved for the most...egregious circumstances, but if we're going to make this work, Cameron...there has to be enough GENUINE belief from the whole to BALANCE out any individual variance, meaning, if anybody that's here now doesn't want to be, or doesn't think they can work with anyone else, they need to leave. We've had members depart of their own chosing before, and if someone feels he or she would be better off, they should be allowed to explore that possibility for themselves, and WE should be allowed to move on.

We're going to have to have a meeting, and HOUSEKEEPING is going to have to be one of the top topics. Time wasted...is something we can't afford, and after what we've endured tonight...I won't stand for it!

:: He had never had this open and honest of a conversation with Morgan. She had never opened up like this to him and vice versa. It was because of Haleigh's revelation that this had been able to happen, and Cameron was fighting that thought as soon as he thought it. He was feeling a little more center, a little more resolved. Despite their inherent differences and volitale relationship throughout the years, both Morgan and Cameron were highlighting something about themselves that made them who they were - each other. Without the other one, be it by devious means or otherwise, they wouldn't be who they were. They were each other's hardest lessons in human form, and the fact that despite all of that, they could have a meeting of the minds meant something big, that they both weren't aware of. ::

"Trust me...never in MY wildest dreams did I ever think I could be madly in love with a Victory sister...but here we are."

Yes....here we are. And speaking of that, Cameron...you being madly in love with a victory sister...as bizarre as it sounds, I know what it goes back to, our earliest days, our very beginnings, when you and Haleigh were held captive in the Citadle by imagiomg and my father.

<< Sighing as she looked upon Cameron.>>

I saw you and Haleigh tonight, Cameron. I saw everything. I'm not telling you that because I want an explanation. It was quite obvious what that was...a culmination of something YEARS in the making, and ever two people NEEDED in each in a moment of darkness...this would certainly qualify.

But you're in love with her....so what about ALYCIA? She's part of our family too, and when she returned to us, to HELP us during the Blue Moon...you charmed her, you made her believe there was something...someone HERE for her- namely YOU.

I CARE about Alycia, Cameron...and I'm going to have to tell her, Zach and Sharon about what we've learned tonight anyway....

<< She could tell Cameron thought she was referring specifically to what happened in the parking garage, she shakes her head>>

...I'm talking about what happened in War Room II.

This part here is between us: I DO want to know what you're going to do about Alycia. She does not deserve to be caught up in the RIP TIDE that is yours and Haleigh's love. I...sadly...I don't believe that HALEIGH will be concerned for Alycia, and then there's Zach.

<< of course, Morgan had no idea that Zach had already dumped Haleigh, and WELL begun HIS process of "MOVING ON.">>

<< and speaking of family members and loved ones>>

:: Squeezing her hand. ::

"When it comes to your mother...I admit...I'm embarrassed in what I said and how I treated her...but to see her how she was during the Frost caper...and then to later find out that...that it came from somebody who would be my mother...well..I think I felt a little bit of what Haleigh might be feeling right now, of how you feel about Christopher. I was cold to Frost...but..and really Morgan, I know it's no excuse..but I was trying to protect Blaze. You remember how volitale she was...and you weren't there, so please just try and trust what I am telling you...everybody was acting insane...just not like themselves..and it seemed like they wanted to save Jasmine so much, that they weren't looking at things clearly. I didn't want your sister or your mother...to lose Jasmine and make Blaze feel like she might want to jump right back through that Siege. I didn't want Jasmine giving her any ideas.. convince her that things could be better...I..."

:: He looked at Morgan seriously. ::

"I know it was wrong how I handled it, but just please know...outside of all of this...this conversation and pact...I really do love Firebird..maybe to a level that you don't understand...but I wasn't about to let anything take her from this world...or YOU."

I know you do [love Firebird], and I am DEEPLY grateful to you and Nicolas for what you did for her when I left. I ached over her...and I FELT like a bad, USELESS sister. I may end up BEING that even now...but you and Nicolas...you saved her, you RESTORED her in a way that I don't think ANYONE could have imagined you'd be capable of. Now she's got this beautiful life, she's enjoying herself with VIVICA LENNOX of all people << Morgan was STILL floored by THAT relevation>> ....

Listen...I GET what you're saying, what PLACE you were coming from regarding your WANT to protect Firebird during the "Frost" caper. You...sound so much like ALISON in that scenario. I've understood her for many years, I understand THAT from you in this situation.

You know that I tried to help Frost the FIRST time around. When Alycia confirmed her identity, I accepted her before anyone else would. You and Haleigh were harsh on here then, and I didn't appreciate it, but you both saw the darkness and ugliness in her that was so strong. It wasn't HER fault. OUR father abused her so badly...its like a horrible pet owner who abuses an animal, and even after the animal is freed or rescued, some wounds, some damage is just too extensive. But one thing you DIDN'T get to see was her courage, her valor during the MASTER MOLD event.

It's ALWAYS going to be a source of sadness and guilt for me to know that she cast herself into the seige perilous during the time that i was..."DEAD", and Foxfire was presumed dead...and she didn't think she had ANYONE left.

What happened just RECENTLY with Talisman using her magick to manipulate the lingering essence of Frost...and all that came with that, I understand from my mother that she, Delilah and others were effect by that spell, and that was what drove their behavior. My mom herself was being stalked by Talisman on multiple levels. It was a multipronged attack. It's a source of guilt and SHAME that I was it here to stop this....stop HER and help SAVE my sister...or some part of her that had been given new form and life without her choosing.

<< She gazes at Cameron>>

I believe that you did your best...given what you knew at the time, and Blaze, when she's able to calm and RECOVER, will recognize that, you two need to see each other soon.

But at the same time, Cameron...I can't ignore what Talisman did to my mom. It was an attack on her...which should have been taken as an attack on ALL. It's an act of war. If we're going to be true to this pact, then we need to be true to that as well. This issue of Talisman needs to be discussed, and my mom needs to be heard, by you and everyone else, because right now, she is feeling like collateral damage. Yes, she is a grown woman, and plenty powerful, and she REMINDED Talisman that Shadow Weaver is more than just a name...but proper attention and action on this shouldn't be pinned on her. She was placed in danger trying to HELP. I can't TELL my mother what to do, But I CAN add my voice to the growing chorus that believes she extends herself TOO MUCH to members of this group and that she SHOULD pull back, for HER sake.

One important thing that happened during all of that was that my mom and Delilah found each other again. I know how much that meant to my mom, and Delilah stood by her through all of that, supporting her however she could!

"I know you want to protect your mom...but she's a big girl...and I know that she anticipated at least Ava's reaction. Haleigh is somebody that Ava has been able to anchor her dual identity here on Earth with. She doesn't trust easily, she isn't open...she's very private. Ava will ALWAYS do what needs to be done for this team...I've stood by her side in battle, I've held her hand when she's lost countless lives. I've done as much as I possibly can to show her how much I value her. She has a right to be upset...and Karen is smart enough of a woman to know where her words came from. Those two will be fine..."

I agree on Ava, and I'm not at ALL angry with her. Yes, my instincts to protect my mom and my sister are strong, and I'm sure you can empathize. But Never in my wildest dreams would I have wanted this for Ava. I don't EVER want to take anything from anyone to benefit myself. After what happened with Frost?? I don't DESERVE any more chances with any other sisters...and Haleigh didn't ask for her origins. THAT is not her fault, nor can Ava be blamed for her reaction to such SHATTERING news. I know my mom and Ava will be okay. I saw them when we were on Aerie together...they have a special relationship due to Persephone's recollection of her relationship with Karen from her own native timeline.

"When it comes to Haleigh...as mad as I am right now, can you imagine? The woman you enlisted to help you figure this all out ends up being the ex-wife of your newly discovered father...and the mother of your newfound sister? I know Haleigh better than anybody on the planet..she REALLY does respect Karen...for her to even WORK with Karen on herself...it speaks volumes. Haleigh switching sides doesn't make sense to either of us. But...we both know...deep down, just like me...and everything I've gone through to be here...there HAS to be something inside of Haleigh that thinks she's protecting us. She's never loved anybody like us..you know that. That love is real and she's moved mountains to prove it...for her to stand in front of us all and denounce it to pledge allegiance to Malice? That can't be it...and while we can't waste time trying to figure that out anymore...just try and take comfort that Haleigh DOES love your mother, that she DOES value her...personally I think she's just utterly embarrassed and shamed. She's the daughter of the people who have done the worst things to us...where do you go from there?"

<< Morgan couldn't help but LAUGH a bit as she exhaled with astonishment. The way Cameron rattled Haleigh's "backstory" off, it was something that not even a seasoned SOAP OPERA writer could just dream up! NOTHING about their lives, their origins, their timethreads was remotely normal, and it would ALWAYS be that way!>>

Being the mistress of a realm that is essentially the doorway to the time stream itself...a doorway to truly ENDLESS possibilities...it's still amazing to me....sometimes MIND BENDING...how what we having going on right here is STILL beyond our most far out imaginations.

When things are truly unexplainable, that alone does let you know there's a REASON for it. It's moments like THAT where Alison is uniquely qualified to provide valuable insight, but she knows that knowledge and information, even just meant to provide comfort or solace, given at the wrong time can cause things to shift in ways that we aren't prepared for and DON'T WANT to see come to pass. She gets so much flack for it....and I think that something needs to be said about that too. We need to stop regarding people in this group as tools or means to an end.

"Remember that Malice idea...because I'm truly on board for that. And I feel every single one of those things right now. If I weren't a better man...I'd LET you do it...but you're not JUST Sorceress Supreme...just like you are wanting people to remember about your mother...you are a WOMAN. You are a HUMAN woman who has love and family and friends...and lives on EARTH...lives in this world. I don't know how you do it...if I could wield the power you do...I would have destroyed the world seven times over...but that's why I never will..So call on your strength, Morgan...call on what centers you HERE on Earth."

<< and there it was. THIS was what would forever separate her from THE Darkchilde. She hadn't LET go of her humanity and transcended forms, her life was on EARTH, NOT Limbo. Just as Ororo had urgently reminded her quite recently, just as Nicolas had reminded her upon her return to Melrose Place.>>

<< Cameron added his voice to a special chorus, one that Morgan KEPT in her mind and heart, and he reminded her that what enriched her life as a WOMAN was NOT her magick or her power, it was her FRIENDS, her FAMILY, her LIFE here on EARTH. She had returned for a reason and it was becoming more clear by the moment, and she'd begun pulling her family back to her, INCLUDING Delilah, and now Cameron! She would be stronger with all of them, THEY would be stronger TOGETHER.>>


<< Sigh>>

Cameron...

<< she looks up>>

Hecate help me...give me clarity...but I CAN'T just WRITE Haleigh off, not even now. I CAN'T believe that this is the end. I AGREE with you that there's some reason...and it's not just as cut and dry as her wanting to pacify Malice...but the more time I spend trying to make sense of it, the worse this headache I've begun having will become.

I know what Haleigh is capable of...NOT just the bad...but the GOOD, how FAR she'd go for you, how she tried to SAVE me from the clutches of Master Mold....and so many other things. I understand now more than I ever did before...she was making the same journey I was...trying to BALANCE THE SCALES. She worked SO HARD, and endured so MUCH. The revelation and about Christopher and Diana....it must have SHATTERED her, and then DIANA KILLED her when she went to her about it!

Even though I'm shifting my mind for tactical purposes...I CAN'T just abandon her in my mind...or my heart. She's....my SISTER. she shares the same father with me, Blaze, Frost...and he abused her...perhaps in the most primal way! His actions set her on a course predetermined from the moment she was CREATED...and for someone to LEARN about THAT as their origin....well...it would take someone like my MOM to explain what that can DO to a person. I now know that my mom's work with her played a role in her handling this the way she did. It could have gone so differently and I don't need to be a precog to know that. We could have had some version of the INFERNO crashing down on us...and...could she be blamed for it!?

I dont know WHAT we're supposed to DO about HER just now. But we've got PLENTY of things to do right now and in the meantime

regarding US, OURSELVES, THIS group, THIS family...so that when the "question of Black Widow" presents itself to us....we'll be READY to answer it TOGETHER.

"I promise you Morgan.. despite my flighty past...despite all of my flaws..we can do this. They will not win this war. I'm not my sister...I can't predict the future...and I can't make you trust me. But as I sit here...the only thing that calls to me...outside of my anger...my pain...my sorrow...is the fire to protect us...and the realization that you and I together...on the same page...is something that no timeline...no seer...no MALICE will ever see coming or know how to destroy.."

:: He hugged Morgan. ::

"We can be the change we wish to see in the world...or whatever garbage Ghandi said....are you in?"

<< Morgan couldn't help but smile. She heard...she agreed...she....BELIEVED.>>

<< She returned Cameron's embrace>>

Yes...I'm in.

 

[Firebird]

The Parthenon- Blaze's suite

Mike kisses Blaze's forehead and take a new swig of his drink.

Blaze "smiles" with her eyes as she exhales.

Look, none of us is infallible. And we often try to pretend we are, or THINK that we are, and we DEFINITELY expect too much of each other. Why do you think Doc is putting herself out for anyone who needs it? Why do you think my - what is it - FLATSCAN ass picked up a gun and some kevlar and trained you fuckers 5 -10 hours a day to TRY to help? Because we are ALL scarred, all damaged, all trying our best to make it because you have been for so long the only thing in the way of...EVERYTHING being fucked up. And we have all endured enough to make most people crawl into a corner and die. I know that to be true.

"Whoa there...FLATSCAN? No, Michael, you may be a mortal, but you're NOT a mere flatscan. "

"Look, if we're supposed to respect BISHOP, a person who HATED mutants, after all the DAMAGE he caused us, just because he had a child with Delilah, then how much MORE should we have...FEEL for YOU, a man who has been there FOR us, went through some of our darkest moments WITH us. You could have escaped and abandonned ship at anytime...and even after what happened to you on aerie...you didn't! "

"You're NOT a flatscan. You're the one man in this world...mortal, mutant or otherwise, that was able to FIND the WOMAN in my mother, and REVIVE her. "

Blaze wraps her arms around Michael from the side and squeezes him tightly.

"You've been a mentor to Nicolas, you're Alison's chief of security at Minerva's Aerie. Do you think that HARBINGER, The Keeper of Time, would tap just ANYONE to fill that VITAL role for her!? "

"Would Alison, my mom, and myself have allowed you to DRAG us out of bed at those UNGOLDLY hours for training and drill sessions, would we have OBEYED and been so committed if it had been anyone else?! HELL NO. "

"You're mortal yes, but you're FAR from ordinary. As a man, your PHYSICAL abilities are PEAK human! You're BETTER than olympic athletes! You're skills as a soldier and in black ops were respected by the likes of HALEIGH."

"You DID help us...maybe sometimes when we didn't DESERVE your help."

"When I think about what's happened to my mom...and I listen to you now, I can't help but think about what happened to you on Aerie after SET. "

"GODDESS, Mikey....we were all in such a state of shock...DISARRAY, as you called it earlier. And then Ava...she just SNAPPED, went INSANE...and she...."

Blaze's apple green eyes were misty now as she looked upon Mike.

"She KILLED you. "

"Karen risked her SOUL to restore you. Do you think she would have been compelled to do that for any other man? Anyone ELSE....beside her own daughters?"

"She didn't CARE what happened to HER as a result. She only wanted to save YOU."

"HECATE saved HER because she saw the motivation, it was LOVE for you."

"Honestly Mike...the rest of us ALL owe her such a debt for the risk she took because what happened to you was terrible...it was wrong...and you deserved to be here to see your destiny come to pass."

"And we are LUCKY that you and Nicolas were able to FORGIVE and find your way to TRUST us again."

"You didn't try to leverage any special treatment, or hold us as emotional HOSTAGES, you didn't expect us all to degrade ourselves or slit our wrists to 'proove' how sorry we were...or how much we REGRETTED what happened to you."

"Why can't Delilah get a clue and follow suit!? You just said it...we've ALL endured enough! She is NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO'S HAD BAD SHIT HAPPEN TO HER, and I'm TIRED of Cameron and everyone ELSE acting like she IS. WE can't HEAL if we're all expected to lay on the floor for HER. We don't have to be friends...but she doesn't deserve a pass to be a sullen bitch to everyone either, and NOBODY should be making YOU feel like you're "just a flatscan". If they are...TELL ME who it is...and I'll put them in their place!"

"You're part of this team, this family...and you're part of MY family. You share my mother's heart...and there's NO other man, mortal OR otherwise, that could have pierced those strong defenses that she built after Christopher."

New swig, new thought.

You need to remember what you have done and focus on what made that successful and fucking do it. Since I have been here, the Six is undefeated by its actual FOES. No, the biggest threat to this group is each other forgetting that no matter how special you are, you are not infallible.

Blaze remained silent...listening...

When this group sticks together, they cut Diana's head off, they put an Egyptian God of Destruction out of this dimension, they destroy one of the most powerful malevolent corporations the world has ever known. If you can remember that and forget the small shit, you can get off the mat and at least make sure that Malice does not look forward to seeing us. That, combined with Haleigh's move tonight (I hope) and the emergence of the other team might make a difference. The question is, can you all focus on what is important? I am not including me because the likelihood of me turning the tide is nil - I am just a guy. But any one of YOU can be the one to turn this shit around.

Blaze felt some kind of way after hearing this. She was so OVER EVERYTHING but here he was...giving her what she desperately needed. Pointing her in the direction of what she should focus on. She said it herself...they all don't have to be friends. She also said that sometimes actions prove more than even the most carefully chosen words. Now MIKE had just reminded her what the Six can DO when they ARE a cohesive unit, when they DO believe in each other and the destiny that BINDS them together.

They'd spent ENOUGH time sweating the small stuff, falling into the trenches of the CRACKS that came from the fallout of the blue moon. it was time to LET IT GO and EXHALE and open their eyes and hearts to what was in front of them, what was coming for them, and what mattered. They HAD to take care of each other, because their lives DEPENDED on one another. Without THEM, the rest didn't matter, the world would be destroyed...if not by Malice...then by Circe, or something as otherworldly as Badiane.

If Mike could find serenity and focus...then Blaze could too. She had to get back to being centered so she could be there for the people that mattered most to her. She had to MATCH the steely courage and resolve that made BLACK WIDOW LEGENDARY now.

"You're NOT just a guy, Mikey. You're OUR guy. You're part of US, you're NEEDED, WANTED, and you MATTER, and don't you let ANY of those bitches tell you otherwise!"

"And Haleigh....she's not a facade. I understand that now. Christopher and Malice don't get to have her. They may have CREATED her...but that's only the FIRST step in life. She DESERVES the chance to tap into the equity she EARNED. All of this, what's happened tonight....HER...it's all sinking in for me now. We'll get her OUT of there...somehow. "

She moves forward, realizing how much time has passed.

"Oh no....Morg is STILL not back. It's been too long, I have to go find her, Mike."

 

[Ruby]

The Parthenon – B ar Six




:: Shortly after Blaze and Mike left with Karen, Cass left too. She took the elevator back to the lobby and headed for Bar Six. She chose an out-of-the-way spot where she couldn’t be seen from the lobby. You’d have to go inside the bar and REALLY look if you wanted to find her, but that was how Cass wanted it. She had wanted solitude and, as luck would have it, that’s what she got. Hardly anybody was around her; they were all gathered at the bar watching a football [soccer] match. Cass wrinkled her nose. With all the raw memories that had been turned up due to Haleigh, she was not impressed. She and Ben went to a lot of football matches during their faux-relationship. He was a big football fan…or so he SAID. Sighing, she moved to the other side of the booth so she wasn’t facing the TV. ::

:: Cass shook her head. She didn’t want to endure those memories so she focused on what had just happened. Haleigh left them. Haleigh left them for MALICE. And she gave perhaps the least convincing excuse EVER – she did it to SAVE them. Cass shivered. Haleigh can say whatever she wanted, but Malice could totally find out about EVERYONE if she wanted. And that didn’t sit well with her. Haleigh knew a lot about her that she’d rather keep secret. Now that the truce has been broken, Malice AND her cohorts would be coming after every single one of them. ::

I have to get out of here!

:: She couldn’t stay here, not with the target that had been ‘painted’ on her back thanks to Haleigh. ::

Okay, so I will get my suitcase, throw some clothes in there, and some other stuff, and I’ll be gone before anybody even notices.

:: Her hand shook as she brough her drink – sparkling apple cider – to her lips and took a sip. She couldn’t just sit around waiting for someone to strike. She had to be on the move NOW. Cass had always been that way. When things got tough, she got out of there without a scrape. It was what happened after Ben attacked her. When Ben had fallen unconscious, Cass was TERRIFIED when she couldn’t kill him. So, she flew out of her flat after dropping her phone in the toilet like a bat out of hell and never looked back. She had to have some of her vampire friends go and collect her belongings just so she wouldn’t have to deal with it [but as it turned out, she was still dealing with it even now]. Then she BEGGED Diana, head of the Siren Sect, to help her escape London. She did, and so Cass fled to New York…only to find that he had followed her. So she made her way to Los Angeles, and she hadn’t heard news about him ever since. ::

*panicked*: I need to leave!

:: Cass no longer felt safe at the Parthenon. After all, HALEIGH was in charge of the security here. Malice could easily make her hack into the system and wreak havoc on the hotel AND on the team. Cass had made a decision. She would leave New York. TONIGHT. If the decision was between fight or flight, well, Cass would always choose FLIGHT. But… ::

Cameron. And Blaze.

:: They needed her. She couldn’t just abandon them, could she? Especially not after Haleigh did. Even if Ava hated her, she had to be here for her! A small sob escaped from Cass’ mouth. She didn’t know who to trust anymore. Everybody told her that she could trust the team, hell, even HALEIGH told her that…but now that Haleigh’s gone she didn’t know who she could depend on. She wished Alison was there. She’d ask her, and Ali would tell her. Another sob escaped. She pulled out her phone and pulled up Cameron’s contact information. Everyone would no doubt think that she would pull away from them because of Haleigh, because that is how she usually operated in the past. Sniffling, she sent him a text. ::

Cameron? I’m here if/when you need me.

:: She liked Cameron. He had become like a brother to her. Next she scrolled to Blaze’s contact. She felt bad about the dirty look she gave her friend. But the news about her gaining yet another sister was a trigger for her. She knew that Blaze would understand. She wrote out a long text to Blaze, explaining EVERYTHING. But then she deleted it all. This kind of talk was something that had to be done face to face. But not now. Cass wasn’t in the right mood to have that kind of talk with Blaze. Not yet, anyway. So she created a new message. ::

Blazing Hot Victory. We need to talk. But not now. I still need time to cool off. But I just wanted to let you know that I’m so sorry.

:: Sighing she put down her phone and sipped her drink, alone with her thoughts. ::

 

[Arsenal]

"Whoa there...FLATSCAN? No, Michael, you may be a mortal, but you're NOT a mere flatscan. "

Blaze then proceeded to give an impassioned dissertation on "Why Mike might be the best guy walking the Earth today". It was almost embarrassing, yet it also warmed his heart. It PRIMARILY warmed his heart. He never worried about it because the love he found in Karen and the acceptance of the others for what he could do was sufficient, but Blaze apologizing over what he had suffered when Ava killed him...it gave him a satisfaction, a healing that he thought he did not need. But as she hugged him and continued to speak, he held on and allowed a couple of tears to fall.

He needed to hear what she had to say. The last caper had been hell on him as well. Watching Karen be violated by Talisman emotionally and assaulted by her while he could do nothing, while HE HIMSELF sat on the brink of death, it had hurt him deeply. It had reminded him painfully of his limitations. He had big things on his mind for himself, for Karen, before his confidence had been shaken. But the full-voiced endorsement of one of Karen's daughters, the inclusion of him in their family, the soliloquy that showed him the tactical as well as the emotional value Mike had to Blaze put him back on track.

All he could do was his very best. All he could do was re-evaluate his effort daily and re-dedicate himself often to his cause and his relationship. And he, in his mind, HAD failed Karen to a point with his silent enabling of a workload that was untenable given the unusual circumstances of the patient(s) involved. But he would be more privately assertive. And in his heart, he already knew that Karen would be receptive if he were. He had worried too much about Christopher, about how many walls that he had torn down to get to the woman behind him that he had lost a bit of the man that he was getting there. Karen accepted him as a partner and he would do right by her, he would protect her and confer with her on her decisions, as he had done not so long ago.

He brushed a hair that had fallen into her face away as he looked upon her. She stirred slightly and a word escaped her lips.

Mmmichael?

I'm here, baby, go back to sleep.

Mike caressed her shoulder and down her side, ending with a light squeeze at her hip and she settled back in to sleep. He turned his attention to the pretty redhead still holding on. He squeezed her back and continued to listen.

"You're NOT just a guy, Mikey. You're OUR guy. You're part of US, you're NEEDED, WANTED, and you MATTER, and don't you let ANY of those bitches tell you otherwise!"

"And Haleigh....she's not a facade. I understand that now. Christopher and Malice don't get to have her. They may have CREATED her...but that's only the FIRST step in life. She DESERVES the chance to tap into the equity she EARNED. All of this, what's happened tonight....HER...it's all sinking in for me now. We'll get her OUT of there...somehow. "

She moves forward, realizing how much time has passed.

"Oh no....Morg is STILL not back. It's been too long, I have to go find her, Mike."

I understand, Blaze. I will be right here if you need anything. I will have room service sent up as well. I will include favorites for the two of you.

Blaze rose to leave and he rose with her, pulling her into a hug, then looking her in the eyes.

And thank you. You have helped me more than you know.

As she left, he closed the door and sent an order message to the restaurant downstairs. They would be by in roughly 45 minutes, time for a nap perhaps?

He returned to Karen, picking her up and cradling her as he sat down, then laid down on the chaise. He placed her head on his chest and held her in one arm as he leaned back and began to drift off to sleep, the scent of her hair making him smile as he closed his eyes...

 

[Prophet]

The Parthenon Hotel - Parking Garage

The same. Enough is enough. But it can't JUST be us. There is division that MUST be addressed, and bridged. You know what I'm speaking to. I remember...years ago, when I expelled you from the Six. There were certainly reasons at that time that would have WARRANTED it , but ultimately that was not what you deserved. It's another regret that I have regarding my treatment of you.

Everyone deserves a chance to COME BACK from mistakes that they made. EVERYONE, and it's time that anybody else that has BEEF on this team with someone or OTHERS, understood that.

Expulsion should be reserved for the most...egregious circumstances, but if we're going to make this work, Cameron...there has to be enough GENUINE belief from the whole to BALANCE out any individual variance, meaning, if anybody that's here now doesn't want to be, or doesn't think they can work with anyone else, they need to leave. We've had members depart of their own chosing before, and if someone feels he or she would be better off, they should be allowed to explore that possibility for themselves, and WE should be allowed to move on.

We're going to have to have a meeting, and HOUSEKEEPING is going to have to be one of the top topics. Time wasted...is something we can't afford, and after what we've endured tonight...I won't stand for it!

:: He pondered for a moment if Morgan would be as understanding about that sentiment when it came to people like his mother, or this version of her Kelly Shaw. Did she believe, the woman who had almost destroyed the world in rage, that even people like Talisman deserved a second chance. He already knew the answer to that question, but the time to discuss her was not yet at hand. It would be, but right now it wasn't on the table. ::

"Despite all of our differences and anger...everybody is still here. They may not like how things work, but they are here. That's half the battle, we just have to make sure that this team runs as a democracy, that there are measures in place. Protocols to be followed. As long as there is transparency that we all can agree with...I have faith that each and every one of them will remain..."

Yes....here we are. And speaking of that, Cameron...you being madly in love with a victory sister...as bizarre as it sounds, I know what it goes back to, our earliest days, our very beginnings, when you and Haleigh were held captive in the Citadle by imagiomg and my father.

<< Sighing as she looked upon Cameron.>>

I saw you and Haleigh tonight, Cameron. I saw everything. I'm not telling you that because I want an explanation. It was quite obvious what that was...a culmination of something YEARS in the making, and ever two people NEEDED in each in a moment of darkness...this would certainly qualify.

But you're in love with her....so what about ALYCIA? She's part of our family too, and when she returned to us, to HELP us during the Blue Moon...you charmed her, you made her believe there was something...someone HERE for her- namely YOU.

I CARE about Alycia, Cameron...and I'm going to have to tell her, Zach and Sharon about what we've learned tonight anyway....

<< She could tell Cameron thought she was referring specifically to what happened in the parking garage, she shakes her head>>

...I'm talking about what happened in War Room II.

This part here is between us: I DO want to know what you're going to do about Alycia. She does not deserve to be caught up in the RIP TIDE that is yours and Haleigh's love. I...sadly...I don't believe that HALEIGH will be concerned for Alycia, and then there's Zach.

<< of course, Morgan had no idea that Zach had already dumped Haleigh, and WELL begun HIS process of "MOVING ON.">>

<< and speaking of family members and loved ones>>

"Zach is moved on. At a strip club with the man that Delilah just cast out of her web...with Ashley..well Valkyrie from The Birds of Prey. I don't know what you know of HER...but suffice it to say...Zach is moving on just fine. He gave back the ring."

[looking away]

"I don't know what to do about Alycia, Morgan. I fucked up. And this isn't the first time...with Haleigh. Ever since she turned up, I haven't found myself able to control the way that I feel..."

:: He looked at Morgan honestly. ::

"She's the one person I would be with in a heartbeat...and she's the one person I've never been able to be with. Because fate...because social pressure...because death and destruction and The Inferno. It just doesn't seem fair. To be constantly faced with the woman you believe to be your soulmate and never being able to connect. To be together. For awhile now...I had resolved to let it go...to let her just marry Zach and try and find my own happiness...and then Alycia and I came around to each other...and it was fireworks. It was this chemistry. It almost felt the same for a moment. Made me feel like I could be happy with somebody...healthier..or at least somebody that wouldn't cause everyone in my world to lose their shit."

:: Rolling his eyes. ::

"But...of course I had to fuck that up too. I will talk to Alycia..but it can't involve anybody else. She doesn't need to know that anybody else knows. She's prideful. If she thinks that you guys knew...even if I am the first to tell her..she'll lash out..because she's embarrassed. Just please give me some time to do this in a way that doesn't incriminate either you...or Sharon for that matter and in a way that is private and respectful of what she means to me...despite my actions tonight...I do care about her."

know you do [love Firebird], and I am DEEPLY grateful to you and Nicolas for what you did for her when I left. I ached over her...and I FELT like a bad, USELESS sister. I may end up BEING that even now...but you and Nicolas...you saved her, you RESTORED her in a way that I don't think ANYONE could have imagined you'd be capable of. Now she's got this beautiful life, she's enjoying herself with VIVICA LENNOX of all people << Morgan was STILL floored by THAT relevation>> ....

Listen...I GET what you're saying, what PLACE you were coming from regarding your WANT to protect Firebird during the "Frost" caper. You...sound so much like ALISON in that scenario. I've understood her for many years, I understand THAT from you in this situation.

You know that I tried to help Frost the FIRST time around. When Alycia confirmed her identity, I accepted her before anyone else would. You and Haleigh were harsh on here then, and I didn't appreciate it, but you both saw the darkness and ugliness in her that was so strong. It wasn't HER fault. OUR father abused her so badly...its like a horrible pet owner who abuses an animal, and even after the animal is freed or rescued, some wounds, some damage is just too extensive. But one thing you DIDN'T get to see was her courage, her valor during the MASTER MOLD event.

It's ALWAYS going to be a source of sadness and guilt for me to know that she cast herself into the seige perilous during the time that i was..."DEAD", and Foxfire was presumed dead...and she didn't think she had ANYONE left.

What happened just RECENTLY with Talisman using her magick to manipulate the lingering essence of Frost...and all that came with that, I understand from my mother that she, Delilah and others were effect by that spell, and that was what drove their behavior. My mom herself was being stalked by Talisman on multiple levels. It was a multipronged attack. It's a source of guilt and SHAME that I was it here to stop this....stop HER and help SAVE my sister...or some part of her that had been given new form and life without her choosing.

<< She gazes at Cameron>>

I believe that you did your best...given what you knew at the time, and Blaze, when she's able to calm and RECOVER, will recognize that, you two need to see each other soon.

But at the same time, Cameron...I can't ignore what Talisman did to my mom. It was an attack on her...which should have been taken as an attack on ALL. It's an act of war. If we're going to be true to this pact, then we need to be true to that as well. This issue of Talisman needs to be discussed, and my mom needs to be heard, by you and everyone else, because right now, she is feeling like collateral damage. Yes, she is a grown woman, and plenty powerful, and she REMINDED Talisman that Shadow Weaver is more than just a name...but proper attention and action on this shouldn't be pinned on her. She was placed in danger trying to HELP. I can't TELL my mother what to do, But I CAN add my voice to the growing chorus that believes she extends herself TOO MUCH to members of this group and that she SHOULD pull back, for HER sake.

One important thing that happened during all of that was that my mom and Delilah found each other again. I know how much that meant to my mom, and Delilah stood by her through all of that, supporting her however she could!

:: He was glad that Morgan understood where he was coming from. He admitted his fault in the caper but he stood his ground. His concern was Blaze..maybe so much so that he just assumed that Karen would be okay. As he listened to Morgan speak, about how Talisman had effected her mother, how it was an attack on all of them and that it couldn't be ignored. Cameron felt it was yet again another distraction from the bigger threat...which was Diana. The truce was over - and Cameron felt they should focus every waking hour to destroying Diana entirely. If you cut the head off the beast, the limbs will fall. They had done it once before and had a few moments of peace. But before long...because they had entered into this truce, be it out of desperation and necessity, that they had allowed her to live, that Talisman was even a possible reality for them. Diana was the reason she was a threat. Diana was the root of it all...not his mother. ::

"All I can say in this moment...in an effort to maintain the peace between us is that I do not discredit or discount what your mother went through and I apologize for not being there for her more. But please remember...although I was not there for it...and I definitely haven't and didn't agree with it for one second at all..I respected the truce and I didn't break it...I didn't attack and kill somebody who has destroyed nearly everything in my life, a person that continues to do so even in the last few hours of my existence. I have fought alongside her...helped HER out when Viper was set to destroy her. I have maintained distance and I have really said nothing. All of this who has treated my LIFE like collateral damage. I'm not saying that Talisman doesn't warrant being destroyed..but I am asking you to please understand that this isn't easy for me, after having lost every blood relative of mine beside my sister. To see somebody, to know that there is a part of a past I know nothing about...even lightly. Last time she was demented and destroyed beyond repair...killed so fast that I never got any kind of answers. I'm not saying she has any for me...or that she won't be as big of a dissappointment as my own mother..I just - I guess I'm not big enough of a man to let something like that slip through my fingers without even trying to figure a few things out..."

Hecate help me...give me clarity...but I CAN'T just WRITE Haleigh off, not even now. I CAN'T believe that this is the end. I AGREE with you that there's some reason...and it's not just as cut and dry as her wanting to pacify Malice...but the more time I spend trying to make sense of it, the worse this headache I've begun having will become.

I know what Haleigh is capable of...NOT just the bad...but the GOOD, how FAR she'd go for you, how she tried to SAVE me from the clutches of Master Mold....and so many other things. I understand now more than I ever did before...she was making the same journey I was...trying to BALANCE THE SCALES. She worked SO HARD, and endured so MUCH. The revelation and about Christopher and Diana....it must have SHATTERED her, and then DIANA KILLED her when she went to her about it!

Even though I'm shifting my mind for tactical purposes...I CAN'T just abandon her in my mind...or my heart. She's....my SISTER. she shares the same father with me, Blaze, Frost...and he abused her...perhaps in the most primal way! His actions set her on a course predetermined from the moment she was CREATED...and for someone to LEARN about THAT as their origin....well...it would take someone like my MOM to explain what that can DO to a person. I now know that my mom's work with her played a role in her handling this the way she did. It could have gone so differently and I don't need to be a precog to know that. We could have had some version of the INFERNO crashing down on us...and...could she be blamed for it!?

I dont know WHAT we're supposed to DO about HER just now. But we've got PLENTY of things to do right now and in the meantime

regarding US, OURSELVES, THIS group, THIS family...so that when the "question of Black Widow" presents itself to us....we'll be READY to answer it TOGETHER.

"Trust me...I know a thing or two about not being able to let go off Haleigh or write it off..and it's not ever going to get any easier or less complicated."

:: Cameron began to rise from his feet. ::

"And you're right...we have plenty of things to do in the meantime. I know I'm an empath, but enough of all this emotion already!"

:: He smiled as he made his pact to Morgan in stone. ::

Morgan: "Yes...I'm in."

"Good...now...you're sister is about two seconds from busting in on all of this. I can sense her emotions even from down here...and I'd like to see if I can find Ava."

:: He kissed Morgan on the cheek. ::

"Thank You...for coming to me. I needed it. And I appreciate it."

:: Extending his hand to pull Morgan up. ::

"We don't have much time...but we'll need to outline a few things before we meet with the others. Make sure everything is crystal clear. For now...Blaze and your mother need you."

:: They made their way out of the parking garage, their faces appearing far braver, more confident and stronger for those around them. It was definitely the beginning of something very different. ::

 

[Seer]

The Night Continues...

<< As the revelation of Haleigh Davidoff as the offspring of Christopher Victory and The White Queen, and the realization that Haleigh was in fact a biological sister to Blaze and Morgan, tore through The Six, the bitter irony of the feelings of joy and success happening just across town were lost on them. >>

<< Haleigh's sports car pulls up to the gates of The Hellfire Club, and as she enters - it becomes clear that while the emotional world of The Six might be in the process of destruction, a party was in full effect at Hellfire, one that would solidify a period of darkness and despair for The Six...a period so dark it was a borderline rolling BLACKOUT. >>