11450/X-Men Assemble

X-Men Assemble
Date of Scene:	09 May 2020
Location:	War Room - X-Men Base
Synopsis:	Scott summons the team together to talk about current events.
Cast of Characters:	Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Phoenix, Wolverine, Psylocke, Cannonball

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Cyclops has posed:
It may be the weekend, but that doesn't mean the X-Men get a day off. Cyclops sent out a message to the main members of the team to meet him down in the War Room. Dressed in his blue and gold uniform, he has his head mask pulled down into a hood with a pair of red shades on. He has a number of monitors currently with several different AAR's. With his arms folded over his chest, he is studying one in particular.

On the large table is several pots of coffee and a box of donuts, and a beer for Logan if he will show. His own mug is half-filled and steaming from a recent pour. Black. No cubes or cream to sweeten it. He likes it black. '

Nightcrawler has posed:
    There is the characteristic sound of air being displaced and the smell of brimstone, and sitting perched on a chair wearing a pair of black track pants with red stripes, and a black T-shirt with a red X-shape over the left breast. His tail reaches over to the box of donuts, one hand reaching for a mug, the other for the coffee.

    "Aaah, guten tag Scott!" he chipperly greets the team lead. "Something must have occured, else there would not be such an urgent, short-notice alarm!"

Phoenix has posed:
A day off? How exotic sounding! But in these parts, duty always calls, and so at the summons Jean relocated herself from school office desk to work office desk. She doesn't stop by for an outfit change, instead stepping into the room in a pressed black suit with a gold shirt showing underneath. It wouldn't be the first time she'd grabbed a uniform on the fly when needed, and wouldn't be the last.

She gives a quick smile as she heads towards her customary seat with all the efficient ease of muscle memory. "Well, it can't be an entirely urgent emergency if there's time for snacks. I'll take donuts over in-flight protein bar anyday."

Wolverine has posed:
Logan does his best to be late. Hell he's be happier to be the last one there. There's no reason for it, he just likes to push buttons. And its the easiest way one can feel out a room. When you're 'fashionably late' people tend not to hold you in high regard. And it's not just that he's late, but he's not even in uniform either. There's no need. So he's dressed in usual flannel, jeans, and boots. Not to mention a cigar in his teeth, because it doesn't matter who's there the smell of his brand is an undeniable flag that he is.

Psylocke has posed:
Betsy's arrival is in the normal manner. She walks through the door, her short heeled boots clicking on the floor with each step. Her choice of dress is casual, just a pair of jeans and a purple button-up top. She eyes the choices of treats and frowns slightly. Then a move to her own seat without picking any. "Good afternoon." Taking in the choice of attire Scott has made, she tilts her head ever so slightly. "Was this more than a normal Saturday? I would've dressed for it."

Cyclops has posed:
"Good afternoon, Kurt, Jean." Scott says as he rounds the table, picking up a number of folds filled with paperwork that he hands to each of them as they enter. "Good to see you guys." He says fondly to his teammates and best friends. The scent of Logan's cigar catches his attention before the hairy Canadian makes his appearance and the field leader lets out a slow sigh. "Logan." He says, handing a folder over to him as well, then clears his throat. "I understand the others are currently out and about on meet and greets for our upcoming students in advisory roles, so I will just update them later."

Giving a quick smile to Betsy, he passes one to her as well. "This is a formal meeting, but not one that requires a uniform. I have a few Danger Room sessions lined up afterwards." He taps a button on the table at the controls, then gives a motion to Megan's file in front of them.

"Megan Gwynn, Pixie, one of our New Mutants has been under attack by someone called The Goblin Prince. From my understanding, going as far as back as Feburary, our school and student body has been attacked by 'gremblins'. Green creatures, sharp claws. They've attacked the students several times not only here, but off site as well. More recent events show that Megan was attacked physically by this Goblin Prince and he stabbed her with some type of soul dagger or sword.. some type of weapon. It changed her physically and emotionally, and as of recently we found out that it changed her powers. Instead of tripping pixie dust, it causes nightmares. Phoenix." He motions to Jean. "Went into her mind and found a lingering presence that is lurking within her mind. So as of this time, I have confined her to the mansion and under Cannonball's guardianship. I believe that this presence may be monitoring her activity and controlling her actions when she is vulnerable."

"I have also been told that Doctor Strange and Morgana has been involved as well and may have further information that can help us solve this issue." He drums his fingers on the table in front of him. "Do any of you have any additional information that may be missing from our report?"

Nightcrawler has posed:
    "Jean, how good to see you, radiant as ever! Donut?" Kurt offers to the redhead, sweeping the box over to her with his tail as he pours himself coffee. "Ah! Logan! How good to see you, radiant as ever! Coffee, my friend?" he offers, holding up the pot with one hand, and as Betsy walks in, Kurt gives a jovial nod of his head "At least I am not the only one underdressed!" he chipperly replies -- and then the mood turns dour, and he sets the coffee pot down (after filling mugs for others, and for himself), grabs a donut, and then continues to perch in his chair, frowning, an appearing to wrack his memory.

    "... all I had known is that there had been an incident, at Club Evolution, with Miss Lance and Pixie involved... I had not heard more of it." he frowns furhter, raising a hand to rub at the back of his unkempt hair a moment.

Phoenix has posed:
"Yes, please, thank you, Kurt." Jean says pleasantly to him before flashing a quick smile to Logan and Betsy as they arrive. Then, she settles into her chair as she collects her folder and the meeting gets underway. She crosses one leg over another as she reviews the new information before speaking up as the Danger Room event is brought up.

"From what I could tell from the brief interaction, it was less of an active force and more of an impression. Hypnotic suggestion, influences, things of that nature. It, combined with the change in her powers, seems to be what's pushing her towards negative emotions and behavior. Whatever it was that's touched her - perhaps this Prince - knew I was in there and it was not happy about it. I backed out there, I didn't want to hurt her on accident without knowing more about this thing. I'm who recommended she stay here, close to where we can watch her. Given what her powers did to holographic people, I don't want to see that happening to real ones."

She sounds fairly agitated at the whole thing, but with school and students under attack it's no real surprise. "I don't have as much day to day interaction with the students as I'd like, and I'm trying to refrain from mass checking everyone without more evidence. Do we know yet if she's the only one who seems... infected? I've been near Shannon and I wasn't picking up anything that seemed off sorts, and to my understanding the two of them are fairly close."

Wolverine has posed:
Pulling the cigar from his mouth, Logan lets looks a large cloud of smoke that would put the Elf 'BAMFing' to shame in size and smell. He sees the beer and rather reaching for it he finds a spot to lean. He has something to say. And with the frown matching that of Kurt's on his face, he isn't going to hold back.

"Gwynn's a good kid. So is Lance. Both have a bit of a hero complex, like every punch hungry kid in this place. But if someone is messin' with my... err the kids. Just point me in the direction of the sonovabitches and I'll end the lil bastard's existence my self."

Oh Logan, ever as subtle as the Juggernaut in a glass menagerie. As his cigar returns to his mouth he starts puff away at it. Thus turning his corner of the room into Industrial England, circa the 19th century.

Psylocke has posed:
"I was aware she had been changed but I have no information to add," Betsy says simply as she settles in. She shakes her head negatively when offered coffee, a tiny wrinkle of her nose in distaste at the notion. Donuts are ignored. Not that she has a problem with donuts but without a beverage, it is not a good choice.

Cyclops has posed:
Nodding his head towards Kurt, Scott says, "According to the report that Megan and Shannon put together for me, there has been several attacks here in the school. Obviously this is more of the mystical arts type and I am not an expert in this at all. I would look for guidance from Strange, or even Illyana."

As he rounds the table, he plucks up his mug and takes a sip from his coffee. "What I need from all of you is to not only keep your eyes peeled but report any and everything that may be weird around the school. Betsy, you and Jean can partner up and work on helping Megan. She will need guidance and your combined efforts to psychically remove this Prince's influence from her mind."

"Logan, you and Kurt will see about tracking this guy down. Talk to Megan and Shannon again and see if there is anything that may be left out of the report, from there, see about talking to Strange or Illyana. If we have to take a trip through another realm to resolve this with claws, I want to know what we will be getting into before we put together a special ops team to resolve it."

Shifting his jaw, he reaches down to tap on the table again, putting up another screen. "If there is no further questions.. there is one more thing we need to discuss."

Nightcrawler has posed:
5TKurt draws up the papers, purusing it, iridescent eyes flicking over information, his frown eepening as he mutters something uner his breath, then brings a hand to his face, rubbing his chin a moment before turning his attention to Logan.

    "I think we should be able to handle tracking him own." he replies, giving a nod to Logan, then looking back to Scott. HIs face is straining for neutrality, though his tail twitches in irritation, then curls behind him.

Phoenix has posed:
"I should be able to handle what's in Megan's mind easily enough." Says Jean as she looks up from contemplating the surface of her coffee. "My concern is just making sure that doing so isn't going to harm her or leave any lasting impacts. Magical being aren't my particular area of expertise, so Betsy and I can have a conference with one of the magicians so we know how to extract this thing and keep Megan safe in the process."

Wolverine has posed:
Logan listens to the plan and even offers Kurt a nod in return before pulling his cigar out and looking to Scott. The gaze he gives Scott is cold. After all, it's not everyday the fearless leader gives him orders to go hunting. "Firstly, I hate magic. I've dealt with it before and I won't say what I think of it with Bets and Jeanie in the room." he looks to the two women, tapping his head and shaking his head. "Secondly, I ain't promising I won't end this whole thing once the elf and I find this punk. If I get an opening, I'm cutting its head from its body. Plain and simple."

Psylocke has posed:
"I would be glad to assist Jean with that." Betsy says, giving a nod to the redhead in question. "Just let me know when. I have a lot of experience with a different form of elves at least." Realizing that some of them may not understand that reference, she adds a small info drop.

"When the Asgardians first crashed to Earth after their Ragnarok, I helped remove the dark taint in the minds of many of their people, from the Dark Elf attacks. Different species but hopefully the experience will help in this situation as well."

Cyclops has posed:
"You have my full permission to do what you do best, Logan. I am under the impression this Goblin Prince is not a human, or a mutant, and I am not thrilled with the fact he was messing with our students and our home. You do what you need to do once you and Kurt get whatever information you need. We just don't make a move without a plan. That's all I'm asking."

Scott finishes off his cup and puts it down with a clink on the table. "Seeing how we're all on the same page, let's move on. Sam recently put together a report to me about a mission that you and him went on recently. He came back with a broken shoulder." He gives a bit of a frown upon his face. "There are gangs that are coming from out of town to Bushwick, kidnapping mutant children and trafficking them to an unknown buyer at this time. I believe you have had the aid of two unknowns that go by Cloak and Dagger? They are starting to make waves on the news. Sam told me that you two were successful in rescuing several children and.. disabling their captives." As he speaks, he keeps his face tight, stoic.

He taps another button, pulling up the AAR in front of him as he furrows his brows. "These two unknowns are not mutants according to cerebro. They are vigilantes and apparantly very dangerous." He shifts his jaw. "But I'll take whatever help we can get at this rate."

"From here out, students can't go into mutant town unsupervised, including Sam's club. We have several mutants who have obvious mutant physical traits and we need to be sure they are protected. It appears those that are targetted are obvious mutants. Do we have any other information on who are trying to kidnap them? What purpose?"

Nightcrawler has posed:
    "... as loathe as I am to permit loss of life... this prince appears to be considerable danger to the students in particular." Kurt agrees with a frown, setting his jaw on his hand a moment before he twitches at the next subject, and straightens up slightly.

    "Ja, Cloak and Dagger, I had been investigating them on my own, fearing that they were..." he trails off a moment, and gives a slight wince, "Related. Tandy Bowen and Tyrone Johnson. I have made acquaintence with the two while they were staying in Saint Margaret's, in Bushwick." he begins, tapping his fingers a moment, as if nervous. "Not enough information for an AAR, I am afraid, but I concour. Asking students to not leave unles they are with a teacher the least safety precaution, but we should make them aware of what could happen if they were to stray -- *especially* our more 'punch-happy' students, as Logan put it."

Phoenix has posed:
Jean Grey draws in a slow, measured breath when the grim talk of taking care of business comes to the table. When she speaks, her voice is carefully controlled, restraining emotion that's there rolling just under the surface. "You all know my thoughts on needless killing, but we can't stand by while this Prince freely attacks our school and the children that we're here to protect and uses their minds as its playspace. That's partly my mistake for not guarding the school more closely, but no more. This has to stop."

And there she leaves it, stopping herself with a drink and swallowing down caffeine and bile. She listens to the remaining news Scott gives, her expressions darkening to hear of more children being harmed. "I don't have information to add, but if its taken vigilantes to scare these hunters out into the light then clearly its an area that's been lax in being watched over."

She looks to Kurt directly as he speaks and says, "But you know kids, Kurt. Telling them something is dangerous, especially to a lot who are desperate to be heroes, is inviting them to go out and take matters into their own hand. Giving them details is likely to just rile them up more. Still..." She sighs noisily, resigned. "They'll go if we tell them not to. ...most of us would have at their age."

Psylocke has posed:
At the mention of Cloak and Dagger, Betsy glances over to the veritable buffet of goodness and sighs softly to herself. She rises to her feet, moves to the table, takes the beer and returns to her spot. She pops the top off the bottle with an expertise showing this isn't her first rodeo.

"I assisted them recently rescuing some mutant children. In New York, at the docks. They were going to be shipped out. Since their methods are more likely to end up with casualties, I opted to go in as a free agent. A few others joined in, including Sam and Alexis. We managed to save the kids and I interrogated some of the gang members involved once it was all over." Translation: I ripped the information out of their heads while they were writhing on the floor.

"It was mostly just human gang members present but there were two unusual men present. They were potentially cyborgs, and they had mutant inhibitors that blocked powers for anyone within range of them. They went by the names of John and John, though we didn't find that out until after the conflict was over. The kids were to be shipped to Singapore by freighter, to the Pulau Jong island. All they knew was put the kids on the boat, get paid, leave. The freighter wis owned by an LLC called Fisherman. I suspect it is a dummy corporation though I have not completed my research yet."

Cyclops has posed:
Nodding his head, Scott listens to Betsy as he paces the War Room, looking over Sam's notes now that some holes are filled with Psylocke's input. "Gotcha. Since you are both familiar with them, Kurt, Betsy, you continue to maintain that relationship with these two vigilantes. Let's make sure that they don't do anything too overboard in the time being. Continue to try and hunt this down if you can. As annoying as gremlins are, this may be a more long term, greater threat."

"Cyborgs that cancel mutant powers kidnapping children to International countries.. " The field leader trails off, pulling up the Pulau Jong island on a screen. Overhead satellite view. "Anytime people start kidnapping mutants, the motives always involve mad scientists and experiments. We should loop James in as well. He's an excellent tracker."

Nightcrawler has posed:
    Kurt pauses mid-chew at the statement from Jean, and purses his lips slightly, an gives a small, but embarrassed shrug, his ears darkening slightly. He maybe wouldn't have crossed the woman who raised him. Very often, anyway.

    "I will keep up contact with Cloak and Dagger the best I can, and will start monitoring Bushwick carefully." he gives a nod, and looks to the island, his frown deepening. "They chose poorly to use children."

Phoenix has posed:
"Robots hunting mutants. It would be a running joke at this stage if it didn't make me want to turn things into boiling puddles." Jean says with a coarse sigh as she pinches the bridge of her nose. "That sounds like a plan. Rope me in if you need. In the meantime, I'll focus on Megan and checking to make sure no one else is impacted, as well as seeing if there's any traces of these gremlins or goblins lurking around the school."

Wolverine has posed:
Logan sits and listens to everyone. He continues to suck on his cigar as it finally reaches the end of its life. Lifting a foot he puts out the dying cherry on the heel of his boot before slipping the butt into his shirt pocket. "Might I recommend something? I know this is your rodeo and all, Slim. But with all this BS going on. I think you should get all the kids together and read them the riot act." Logan says as he pulls away from his spot and goes for the beer Scott brought to the meeting. As he opens it he takes a quick swig. "I mean It's good that yer keeping us in the loop. But you gotta deal with them too. They arent stupid. And we can't coddle them."

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie listens from the back of the room, his arm still in a cast and sling. "The Robots were odd, until one was damaged would have swore they were human, and the power disruption being a field was odd.

Cyclops has posed:
"It's why I got Jean in here. She's in charge of the school." Scott says with a nod of his head towards Jean, agreeing with Logan's assessment. "Though I know for a fact we have read them the riot act a few times. It just seems that /some/ of us, continues to take the kids out into the field because they beg and bat their eyes."

"I do want to say, that this stops today. As in right now. Even The New Mutants. Not until we resolve our two current issues at hand that are directly affecting children. At the end of the day, we are a /school/. We are in charge of their lives and their parents have their faith in us to guide them to graduation without missing limbs, or being stabbed by Goblin Princes, or being taken out to fight Sentinels. It is our job to train them to protect themselves, but it is not our job to stick them in uniform and let them fight for their lives." He taps the screens off with a press of his finger. "I know that may not be a popular opinion, but until they turn eighteen and are considered legal adults, we need to treat them like children and enforce rules, curfews and restrictions. We have to do better as teachers, as X-Men."

Nightcrawler has posed:
    "... I agree, there are privilages they have and there are--" Kurt is interrupted by a chime from his phone, and he pauses, looking to it.

    "... Pixie is in the Wellness office. There's been another attack."

    He looks up at the gorup "... by the lake."