Timeline: TBA
Mercury: Keeping a watchful eye on the sensor readings of the Blackbird, flying low and silent, Mercury tapped her commlink. "Strike team, this is Skywatch, are you guys and girls in position," she asked after establishing a connection to the X-Men's van. "Laura assured us this is the place they're holding Rachel."
Quicksilver: "I've been in position for some time now," Pietro replied, "Waiting on everyone else."
Komodo: "Looks creepy enough," Melati remarked, looking out of the window as she lounged in her seat. "This Essex guy certainly likes to play it by the stereotypical villain book, doesn't he?" She peered into the dark, frowning at the derelict hospital building, certainly having been abandoned for quite some time by now.
Quicksilver: "What's the point of being a super villain if you're not going to make the effort?"
Mercury: "Patience, Quicksilver, remember to give the others a chance to catch up," Mercury reminded them. "We're going to do this nice and careful. There will be a time for quick action soon enough."
HumanTorch: "He can't be a super villain... He completely sucks at it... Though, thinking about it, most do..." Johnny commented from his seat as he studied the outside of the building.
Quicksilver: "I'm amazingly patient. That's why Rachel isn't all rescued yet and waiting here with me."
Komodo: "Hey, it's not my fault we took so long," Melati replied. "They wouldn't let me kick the pedal on the way here, and I actually suggested that this crummy van could need some serious overhaul."
HumanTorch: "Well, we don't want to get pulled over on the way," he rolled his eyes, "Can you imagine the looks cops would give us for wearing these things?"
Mercury: "Okay, keep the plan in mind and try to stick to it," Cessily announced. "You'll make a stealthy entry, locate where they're holding Rachel, and then get her out of there as quickly as possible. Yes, this will be the place for speediness, Quicksilver."
Quicksilver: "I can do that, not a problem." He stretched a little, "Don't we have a mechanic somewhere in the school, maybe she'll do it for free or something."
Mercury: "In the meantime, we're trying to draw away any Marauders who might be present and keep them occupied," she explained. "I can't guarantee how successful our diversion will be, so expect to meet at least some resistance. Just remember that Rachel is our top priority, so don't let them draw into a lengthy confrontation."
HumanTorch: Johnny glanced over at Mel, "I think we can handle that bit."
Komodo: "Hey, don't you forget the girl who pimped her own tank," Melati tossed in, getting out of the van with Johnny. "Just give Tigra and me free reign with the van for a weekend, and I promise you won't be disappointed. Leave it to the lizard and the cat to get awesome results."
Mercury: "We'll consider that," Mercury replied, a smile playing over her lips. "Alright, we're heading in as soon as you've gained entrance to the facility. Good luck, everyone.... and stay safe. Skywatch out."
Quicksilver: "Great. Can we get going now?"
Komodo: "I thought Ms. Shinypants would never stop talking," Melati remarked, stretching herself. "Definitely - just make sure you leave some of the fun for us slow types, okay?"
Quicksilver: "I'll think about it. I'll get the door for you." He glanced around to take note of all the obstacles that needed removing before he sped off.
Komodo: "Don't let your wife find out you're playing the gentleman for me," Mel replied, taking in their surroundings with her acute senses before starting towards the building. She made sure to stay behind cover, clinging to the shadows as she moved, just as they had done during the countless training sessions.
HumanTorch: "Maybe he's trying to play gentleman for me..."
Quicksilver: "I'm sure she won't mind." he gave a grin, knocking some guards over and knocking them out in the process before exploding the door, he raised an eyebrow at Johnny's comment, "I doubt that very much."
Komodo: "Ooh, in that case I might have to tell her myself, just to see the look on her face," she said, giving a silent chuckle. Peeking around the corner of the gate, she observed Pietro taking out the two dumbfounded guards at the entrance.
Quicksilver: "I almost feel sorry for the guards... but then I remember who they're working for and that goes away."
Komodo: "Alright, let's get going before these guys were supposed to report in for their potty break and donut refill." Melati jumped out of cover and ran towards the main door.
HumanTorch: Johnny quickly followed, changing forms on his way to the door.
Quicksilver: "Torch, stealthy you are not."
HumanTorch: "Well, neither is making the doorway explode..."
Quicksilver: "I can disintegrate it - it just takes longer." He moved into the building.
Komodo: Before she stepped into the run down building, there was a bright flash of light illuminating the nightsky in the distance. "I believe that's the signal that stealth is passe, anyway," Melati remarked.
Quicksilver: "Oh good. I can go and hit people now. If I find Rachel I'll shout but I'll focus on clearing the way."
Mercury: "Strike team, this is Skywatch," Mercury's voice came over the commlink. "Guess our plan worked, because we just got Essex pet-god on our tails. We're trying to keep Exodus occupied and will draw him away from the building. You're on your own now..." Shortly after, the connection was lost to static.
HumanTorch: "Well... That didn't sound good..." he sighed, leaning to peer into the building before cautiously stepping inside as he suggested, "You could go find her, and we could take care of the hitting..."
Quicksilver: "That doesn't sound good..." Pietro was tempted to go back but there were other priorities. "I could... would you rather I did it that way?"
HumanTorch: Johnny glanced over to Mel, "What do you think?"
Komodo: "Hey, just leave some standing for me, will you," Melati told Pietro, dropping into a defensive stance after barging into the entrance hall. "But yeah, I'm good with that. You get Rachel out of here, we'll make sure none of these suckers can follow us."
Quicksilver: "Great. So just like we practised then." He saluted Mel then dashed off to search.
Komodo: The sound of an alarm rang through the building, and moment later the abandoned hospital turned out to be not that abandoned, after all. The sound of boots could be heard in the distance, approaching quickly. "Okay, the guests are here, so let's get the party started, shall we?"
HumanTorch: Johnny let loose a blast of flame in an attempt to hold them off for as long as possible. Hopefully, it was just simple guards and not anyone like the people they had down in the medlab at school.
Komodo: Completely ignorant of the flaming hazard, Melati leaped right through Johnny's wall of fire and tackled the surprised guards. She shredded a rifle with her claws, then swiped her tail to send two more to the ground.
Komodo: "Man, am I glad this sneaky crap is over," she exclaimed, kicking another in the face as he unloaded his weapon into the ceiling.
Quicksilver: "Hey, sneaky crap is underrated - I have a location."
HumanTorch: Bullets. They were bad. He did not want to be shot, so he made sure to do his best to keep everyone away from him while not severely burning anyone. They just needed to be crispy enough to put them out of action...
Quicksilver: Pietro followed the map in his head to where it was indicated Rachel was being held then skidded to a stop in the doorway. "Oh not you."
Komodo: The hired guards didn't need that much convincing that they wouldn't be putting up with a walking flamethrower and an angry lizard, quickly falling back into a semi-organized retreat. Melati ducked underneath another salvo, which hit the wall behind her instead.
HumanTorch: "Not who?" Johnny asked as he downed a guard with a punch to the face, frowning a bit as the others started to pull back. There had to be a reason for that...
Komodo: "Gas the freaks," someone down the hallway shouted, followed by the distinguishable plopping sound of grenades being fired from their launcher. "Gas them and then get out of here already!"
Quicksilver: He could see his target not far behind her but he hated that woman. Feeling nauseas was not something anyone liked. And when you were running at several times the speed of sound, dizziness was the last thing you wanted. "Vertigo."
Komodo: "Aw come on, I didn't come here to smoke no weird crap," Mel said, frowning at the white clouds forming around her. "Hey, why don't these suits come with gas masks!?"
HumanTorch: "Maybe I can heat the air and get rid of it or something..." Johnny offered as he attempted to do so, coughing a bit at the gas. "I think we need to make sure they add gas masks next time, too."
Komodo: "Just make sure this won't end with crispy lizard," Mel called back, shielding her face as the flames burnt higher, creating a strong draft of hot air, blowing down the hallway.
HumanTorch: "I'll try, but I'm not making any promises."
Komodo: The guards resorted to firing aimless shot out of their cover, shouting excitedly among themselves. "Screw this, we're not getting paid enough to put up with that," one called out. "Make sure the backup gets up here!"
Quicksilver: Aaaand there was the nausea. Okay. He could do this. He only needed to ignore it for a little while....
HumanTorch: Once Johnny was sure the gas was gone, he lowered the temperature to one that was a bit more bearable for everyone else. Not that he really minded the people trying to kill him being comfortable, but he didn't want to be fighting alone so he kinda needed Mel.
Quicksilver: He forced himself to run again despite how dizzy he was and he even had time to smile at the look of surprise on Vertigo's face when he shoved her backwards and sent her flying.
Komodo: "Nice job," Melati commented, brushing some ash from the sleeves of her uniform."Hey, why did they stop shooting us? Where did everybody go? Don't tell me we scared them away already. The fun only started."
Dryad: "It might be because they're getting ready for a bigger attack?" Callie offered.
Komodo: The answer to that question was delivered in the form of a collapsing wall, a huge figure standing in the makeshift doorway. "Ah, hell, I wish you weren't right about that, but looks like you hit the nail on the head...."
HumanTorch: Johnny made a face at the guy. Oh, he had to be at least five times his size...
Komodo: A rapidly spinning, man-sized tornado zipped bast the huge brute, throwing up dust and debris as it zoomed down the hallway. "I stand corrected," Melati remarked, "now we're getting the party started."
Quicksilver: He had to give her some credit. She pulled herself together fast. He staggered back a little and swallowed over another wave of nausea.
HumanTorch: He eyed the smaller man that accompied the other two, "Well, he doesn't look as scary..."
Komodo: "Well, have fun with him, because Mr. Brick-Shithouse is mine," Melati announced, already taking off to ran headlong towards the hulking figure.
Dryad: "Oh dear. I say we take out the small ones first - it's always the small ones you have to be careful of right?"
Komodo: Leaping straight at his chest, Mel raked her claws into the brute's skin, her long tail whipping about. The much larger mutant was surprised by the sudden appearance of the leaping lizard, clinging to his wide frame, staggering back a step. She snarled, trying to go for anything that looked sensitive.
Komodo: To her surprise, the razor-sharp claws only cut through the guy's clothes, not even leaving a mark on his skin. She barely had time to look surprised, when a backhanded strike with a huge arm sent her flying backwards, right into the nearest wall.
Quicksilver: Pietro shook it off and knocked the woman back again, this time darting past her and into the room that held Rachel. The restraints didn't take much time to untie and he picked up the unconscious Rachel carefully. "I have her. Getting her out now."
Dryad: "Is it her, or that mutant that can hide in bodies?" Callie asked.
Quicksilver: "If it's her I think I'd already be in trouble since I just picked her up." He secured his hold on her then headed out of the building.
Komodo: "Hell yeah, awesome job, Whitey," Melati muttered into her comm-link, scrambling to get back on her feet. She tried to shake off the dizziness after getting hit by what felt like a whole speeding train.
Dryad: Callie dodged an open-handed slap from the smaller guy on the right. "Retreat is good, yes?"
Quicksilver: Pietro carried Rachel to their pre-arranged drop point where Doctors Summers and McCoy were waiting. "I'm on my way back to lend a hand."
Komodo: "Take your time, fast guy, we got this," Melati replied, jumping right back onto the big guy, trying to cling to his back instead this time around.
Komodo: "Will you stop this and start bleeding like any decent asshole already," she called, trying to hang on while the brute staggered about. "Whoa, watch it!" He jumped backwards, ramming himself and the green-skinned girl into the wall behind him.
Dryad: Callie grinned and pulled out the gun she'd kept hidden from the teachers. she had been expressly told not to bring it. "Okay, hands up, and get your butts on the ground!" She aimed at the guy who was coming in for another slap. He stopped.
Quicksilver: Pietro slid to a stop and tripped up the spinning guy. "Hello."
Komodo: "Watch our for the spinning top guy!" Melati barely held on to the brute's shoulders, looking past his head to see the human twister blast over the scattered debris, sending it flying across the room. Suddenly she was grateful for the makeshift cover in the form of her over-sized opponent.
Quicksilver: "I've got him." Pietro assured her.
Dryad: Callie ducked as shrapnel came flying at her. "Yikes!"
Komodo: Melati wrapped her tail around the mutant's neck, then somersaulted over his head and tried to use the leverage to pull his enormous frame to the ground. She landed on all fours, pulling with all her strength, and actually made him stagger.
Quicksilver: Pietro got up to speed, easily managing to time it so that he grabbed one of spinning guy's arms. "No more spinning for you."
Komodo: "Oh, bad idea," she muttered, realizing that he was falling over right in her direction.
Komodo: Jumping to the side, Melati barely escaped the falling giant. She rolled over her shoulder, then was back on her feet. "I feel ashamed just suggesting it, but I say we should think about leave the cleaning up to those guys and get the hell out of here."
Quicksilver: "I agree. He's wriggly." Pietro nodded to spinny guy, that he was now sitting on.
Dryad: "I agree too!" Callie got up and shot a piece of debris before it hit her. "Look! I got one!"
Quicksilver: "Okay so... you two go on ahead - I'll catch up."
Komodo: "You nailed that one good," Mel said, flashing the pink girl a grin. The big guy was already in the process of getting back to this feet. "Alright, we got what we've came for and did enough damage, so let's leave the bill to them."
Komodo: Making sure the others were close to her, she nodded at Pietro, then sped off the way they had came.
Dryad: Callie ran after them, wishing she could do to metal what she could do to plants - it would be so much easier that way.
Komodo: "Skyguys, you still there?" Melati tapped her comm-link, looking back over her shoulder at the building they've just left. "We've got the package and are on our way out now."
Quicksilver: After making sure they had a clear head start, Pietro got up and ran after the others, easily catching up.
Mercury: "Excellent job, everyone!" Cessily voice was getting interrupted by static. "We took some damage, but the rest of the team is keeping Exodus and friends occupied. For now, anyway. We're covering your retreat, but make sure to get out of there as quickly as possible!"
Komodo: "Gladly," Melati replied, looking up as the Blackbird zoomed by overhead. "Just keep the beer cold until we're home."
Dryad: "I want wine. Beer is disgusting."
Komodo: "Girl, I think after this, you can have whatever you wish for." Melati laughed and patted Callie on the shoulder. She looked back to make sure they weren't followed, before making their way back to the van.