11766/Eye Issues

Eye Issues
Date of Scene:	12 July 2020
Location:	Staff Meeting Hall - Xavier's School
Synopsis:	Plans are made in regards to the alien eyes in Betsy's head.
Cast of Characters:	Psylocke, Phoenix, Cyclops, Beast

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Psylocke has posed:
Betsy had sent out a message, asking for a meeting. What better place than the meeting room itself. It was private, allowed for the teachers to have plenty of room without it being in the more secretive areas. Honestly, she was trying to avoid those for the time being. It would keep the kids out since this area was only available for their use if there was a specific thing scheduled. Otherwise, it remained secure.

Betsy was seated there at the table, dressed in her usual sports wear as the martial arts instructor. Loose sweatpants in black with a matching tank top. The jacket was flung over the back of her chair out of the way.

Her eyes were focused at a point on the far wall without really looking at it.

Phoenix has posed:
Sundays was about the only day Jean forced herself to spend out of her office, commonly outside when the weather allowed. So when she does arrive its in casual wear with simple denim shorts and a green tank top with sneakers. Her hair is pulled back out of her face and there's a line of sweat still on her brow. Along with a bottle of water in her hand, it'd suggest she was probably out for a run when she got the call.

"Hey." She says as she steps into the room and looks to the woman already seated at the table. Jean moves to take a seat across from her and sinks down into it with a look of relief. "Hope I didn't keep you waiting. I was down by the lake. Jimmy's obstacle course the other night made me realize that I've been sitting in an office chair too much lately."

Psylocke has posed:
"No, no, you're right on time," Betsy says, turning to look at the taller redhead. Yet her eyes don't seem to focus on the other woman. It is more her direction than actually looking at her.

She smiles. "Hopefully he saved the program on the obstacle course? I'd like to try it out sometime. And I can always help you out by a few rounds on the mats if you wanted to."

She glances down at the table then back to Jean, still with that something missing in it. "I should've probably done this sooner. Remember when we went to recruit Jeremy Statton? How he thought I was a Sentinel? Seems he had good reason. After much testing, we've discovered that my eyes were replaced at some point with cameras. I'm fine talking about it as I asked Jeremy to stop them from working for the time being, until we are done with our meeting." Thus, she's blind.

"I am trying to determine the best course of action here."

Phoenix has posed:
"He probably did. It's a hell of a workout, I'd like to practice more on it myself."

Jean leans herself back in the chair as she watches Betsy from across the way. Even if her face can't be seen, the frown can be heard in her voice, though that in itself doesn't sound surprised by the revelation. "I know. He spoke to me about it when I was guiding him through a Danger Room session." She looks up towards the ceiling and the glittering crystal lights that hang there. "Well, we can't leave you unable to see. We're going to need to track down who did this and resolve this, peacefully or otherwise, but to do that you need to be able to see."

But that brings up a whole nother set of questions. "Do you have idea when this happened and how long it's been going on? Has Hank checked our your eyes too? Are they... completely mechanical?"

Psylocke has posed:
"Then seem to be technology in an organic covering. With enough tech to read as normal when x-rayed or a multitude of other tests. Jeremy can block them for a time. But it obviously isn't a full time fix unless I want to tote him around on a wagon behind me everywhere I go."

Despite the flippant comment, Betsy's expression doesn't really match. "It's been a few months, the best I can figure. I had gone out on a patrol, dealing with a Hand situation in town. After the fight, I was out for about 24 hours. Got to love poisons." She shakes her head. "That's the only time I can come up with where it could've happened."

She turns her head toward the door of the room then back over to Jean. "The only thing we got is that it is from very, very far away. Probably somewhere in space. And the visual image of this." She shares he image of Mojo that had been captured for a split second, sending it over telepathically to the other woman. It was just his face.

Phoenix has posed:
Jean Grey twines her fingers together so she can prop of her head as she leans her elbows on the chair. Her face is pensive, brows knit and mouth pulled into a line. She focuses on the image in her head and commits it as much as she can, but it's hard to forget a mug like that.

"Ugh. And I thought Jabba was ugly. No, there's a real one." She drops her chin to stare at the table with her forehead on her hands. Think, think. "Well, we'll have to go by that date then, which means there's a lot someone's likely seen. So, it sounds like we'll need to trace the signal back then and go pay someone a visit. If we can at least determine where it originated, maybe then we'll at least know who - or what - we may be dealing with."

Psylocke has posed:
"That's definitely a good idea but in the short term, I can't continue to be a spy for them. I've already compromised the school and the team with my presence, without even knowing it," Betsy says in a disgruntled tone, words a bit sharper than they should be due to her self annoyance.

"First thing, I feel like they need to be removed. Unless we can find a way to jam them more permanently. Otherwise, they need to be gone. I can use my telepathy to function but we would lose me probably as an effective fighter for that time." She brushes her hair back from her face absently. "Don't know anyone with a spare set of eyes laying around, do you? Maybe Forge could make some..."

Phoenix has posed:
"Betsy," Jean says quietly as she looks back up, her face drawn tightly with the weight of the discussion. "I'd scold you for being more concerned about being a fighter over just being able to see, but... I get it. Alright, well, if Jeremy can keep them offline for now then let's give Hank and Forge a chance to check them out. Maybe they can determine a way we can break the connection without having to find you, er, new eyes. If they can't, well, we'll find an alternative somehow someway. Security is obviously a concern, but I don't want to put you in a worse spot if we can afford it."

Psylocke has posed:
At the almost admonishment, Betsy's smile is bittersweet. "After all these years, you know me. I was always bothered by not being able to carry my weight, or so I felt. By not being a better fighter, able to help. This puts me in a position where I feel like I'm going back to that. When I got this body," she glances down at herself, although she can't actually see it.

"I was horrified. And thrilled. Finally I was able to do more. To help more. I know it's stupid. But it's what was important to me. I don't want to be an albatross having to be lugged around instead of flying on my own."

A faint sigh. "When I'm around here, Jeremy can help with it, as long as he is willing to do so. But probably easier if I avoid being here. Thankfully with it being summer, classes are out so I can take time away except when we are working on this problem."

Phoenix has posed:
"I'm sure the same sentiment would apply to all of us old timers. We'd rather be dead than not able to do something, even if that's the exact opposite of being helpful. It's not a stupid feeling at all. It's what keeps each of us coming back from each fight, so we can be there at the next."

Jean relaxes her arms and reaches into her pocket to pull out her phone, sending off a quick secure message to the two geniuses in question to chat with her as soon as they were free. "I hate having such a new student involved, but he's got a knack no one else around has. I think it helps him, though. He seems to share the same sentiment of wanting to make a difference, just he seems to enjoy diving into the deep end - interstellar spies and government cover ups alike. I've been waiting for an invasion or the FBI, whoever beats the other to our door." Reason #32 of why Jean Grey doesn't get much sleep anymore.

"Tonight. Tonight we'll get a game plan together, as much of one as we can. I don't want you dealing with this perversion any longer than you have been. You still have a safe place to stay, right?"

Cyclops has posed:
The doors swish open to reveal Scott as he makes his way inside. He got the play by play from Jean through her psychic connection. He's dressed in a laid back pair of jeans and a snug black t-shirt on with a backwards cap on his head.

"Hey, sorry I was late. Was finishing up a report." He says as he gives a look of concern over towards Betsy. "Are you feeling okay?" He asks as he takes his hat off and runs a hand back through his brown hair.

Psylocke has posed:
The sound of the door brings her head around. A telepathic ping lets her know who just arrived, without going all invasive in his head. "I'm feeling as well as can be expected in the circumstances," Betsy answers carefully. Translation: Holding it together just barely.

She turns her head though still never focuses on anyone, attention back to Jean. "I still have my condo in town. Well, my brother's place but I've been living there for over a year. He has some need to be down in Sunnydale right now so isn't using it. I think it has to do with it being a Hellmouth." She shrugs, dismissing that as no big deal. "Whoever is monitoring will have known about the apartment but I do my best to just to about things like business as usual. Try not to give much away. I know it isn't perfect but I hope it's boring enough they aren't watching every second to realize that."

Cyclops has posed:
"Well, let's hope whoever is watching isn't uploading it for general consumption." Scott says with a frown, taking a seat next to Jean. He reaches out to place his hand over Betsy's, giving it a squeeze with his fingers. "We'll figure this out though, one way or the other."

"I suppose talking to Hank and Forge and maybe Josh Foley would be a good starting point. Get the eyes removed, find out where exactly this signal is going to and see about giving you your sight back safely."

He gives her another firm squeeze. "Worse comes to worse, we can use Shannon." There's a slight teasing tone in his voice.

Phoenix has posed:
"Hopefully." Jean murmurs in equal parts to both of their viewing concerns. She gives Scott a quick, wane smile as he sits before she goes back to the topic at hand. "Well, if you ever get worried something if off or you just need company, call me. I don't care what time it is. I will come over and we can have a perfectly normal, boring sleepover and one of the guys can hang outside in a van in case anyone would show up uninvited."

She does turn and give Scott a very bland stare. "No, we aren't asking Shannon. I can't risk the backblow from trying to restore missing body parts, not with how her powers have worked. We should be able to come up with a plan with the three of them without getting more students involved."

Psylocke has posed:
"I didn't know she could grow back body parts. I suppose she could fix the injuries from the eyes being removed but I don't think she could grow back a set of eyes for me. Even if she wasn't a student."

Betsy considers as she brushes her hand back from her face again, more a nervous motion than a necessity. "I've sent a message out to Forge. Just waiting for him to get back to me. I have no idea how to reach Joshua at this time. Unless one of you still has his number."

Cyclops has posed:
"It was a joke .. mostly. You know she'd probably throw herself on top of you in an attempt to heal you though if she was to find out." Scott says as he gives Betsy another squeeze before letting go of her hand.

"I can get ahold of Josh, yeah. He's in college locally and I am sure he would rejoin us for something like this. He's a good kid. Really wish he didn't turn down the chance to join the X-Men. He'd be incredible in the field."

Rubbing a hand along the stubble upon his face, he furrows his brows. "But first thing is first, getting you in front of Hank and Forge. We'll create a plan and then execute it. Remove the threat, then we can work on the other details revolving your eyes."

Phoenix has posed:
"I don't think she could, but my concern is that she's *try* and we don't know what would happen." Jean says with a soft grimace. "Her heart's in the right place, but no, not something like this. Scott can ping Josh. I try and keep files updated of former students and where they are. It's easier to send someone a text or email if I need as opposed to Cerebro-stalking them and showing up at their door, and less creepy. Less of a headache too. Speaking of, Betsy, want some tea or something else to drink?"

Psylocke has posed:
"Tea would be lovely," Betsy replies. Then a hint of a smirk appears. "There is something to be said for Cerebro stalking though. It at least is rarely boring when you do show up on the doorstep." She waves a hand up by her face, indicating the non working eyes. "Point being made even as we speak. Quite literally."

Cyclops has posed:
There's a chuckle from Scott. "I think just calling ahead would suffice for Josh." He gives a lick of his lips in thought, tilting his head as he glances over towards Jean.

"I suppose we could always ... uh .. contact Bruce as well. Now that we've established a relationship with him, I suppose it wouldn't hurt utilizing his big brain in case Forge and Hank come up short."

Phoenix has posed:
"You saying I bring trouble?" Teases Jean as she stands up and walks over to the door leading to her office and her setup in there. "...you're probably right." She adds as she ducks into her office to go heat up a kettle.

Thankfully she's close enough to still listen in, given her office is little more than a converted dressing room for the old ballroom. "I wouldn't call it a relationship. You and I kind of told him to politely... er, fuck off until we could find a safer way of doing things. Once we know some details about what we're dealing with, we could send the Avengers word. Even if we don't need to bring them on, they can at least be on the lookout. If one of our own was hit - and fast from what we can tell - there's no telling if other teams out there were impacted. For the safety of all of us working for the good of others, we should at least let them know someone out there may be a risk."

Psylocke has posed:
"We can do that at least. I don't think bringing in Dr. Banner is an answer though. I still am a bit offended that they felt a mentor outside a school was needed for a student," Betsy says with a shrug. "I know he is brilliant but this is high school sciences. We don't need her solving the mysteries of the universe at this level."

She considers. "Avengers probably have more space contacts. Or Logan actually, through Alpha Flight. I may be able to talk to Asgardians, see if they are familiar with the entity or species of that being caught in the camera frame."

Cyclops has posed:
"Sounds good. Then we have a rough draft of somewhat a plan. How long does our resident techno has your eyes turned off for? Is he multi-tasking this whole time or is he like .. in a closet or something nearby?" Scott asks as he glances about the room for a moment.

"Either way, do you need to be assigned someone just in case? Like Logan or .. " He trails off with a scrunch of his face. He ticks a few names off almost immediately.

"Maybe Allison?""

Phoenix has posed:
"That rankled a bit, but I was just more concerned about security." Jean says as she fishes out tea bags. "Teenagers drive all of us up the wall, and we're used to it. We also don't turn into highly destructive monsters when they snip the last thread of patience. PMS jokes aside."

"Hm, true, they all do have more universal contacts than we do, not that we don't have *some* that might be familiar with the shiftier sides of the galaxy - if you can pin them down." She peeks out of her office door frame and glances to Scott, one brow raised in a question, though not without adding, "*If* we have to."

Psylocke has posed:
"I know the Shi'ar would potentially be an option but I'd like to avoid them as well." Betsy shakes her head a bit. "I suppose as a last ditch effort."

At the suggestion of someone staying with her, Betsy turns to spear Scott with a look, one eyebrow arched. Well, it would be a look if she wasn't actually focused somewhere over his left shoulder but she tried!

"When I am at home, my eyes are functioning fine. I don't need a bodyguard. Male or female." Yes, she noticed how he carefully selected his option.

Cyclops has posed:
"I'd prefer we worked in teams, seeing how we have been compromised and the bad guy most likely knows that you're turning them off and on now. I think my biggest fear is that someone may attack you at home when you're by yourself. Even if you are a psychic ninja, some extra firepower won't hurt." Scott says with a quick grin to her.

With a look to Jean, he gives a shake of his head. "There is no way I am contact my father and his rogue of space pirates for help. It always comes with a price and it involves me getting stuck on a ride across the galaxy. Not this year."

Phoenix has posed:
"Just an idea." Jean says delicately as she ducks back into her office to pour mugs of tea. She returns in short order with three mugs which she sets out, with one in front of Betsy. Packs of sugar and creamer are pulled out of a pocket.

"I am with Scott on this one, Betsy. You're absolutely capable, and I'm still not picking a fight with you even if you can't see. I just don't trust how fast they seemed to be able to hit you. Hm." She thinks to herself as she sugar's up her mug. "What about one of the cabins? It's not near anything secure like here in the mansion, but at least you're close enough in case you need backup. At least we're only a few minutes out instead of a whole drive in."

Psylocke has posed:
"I can be here in seconds thanks to the shadow porting," Betsy says with a shake of the head. She picks up the tea as it is then pauses, realizing she is at a loss. "Can someone add two sugars and three creamers please? Unless you want me to peek to do it myself."

"But if you insist, I'll take one of the cabins. Furthest one out. I don't want to endanger the school more than I already have."

Cyclops has posed:
"Take the cabin near Logan if you can. At least that way between the two of you, you can take out a space army." Scott reaches across the table to grab the sugar and creamers, then deposits the required amounts into the cup of tea.

"We visit there often as it is so if anything, we'll probably be near by as well."

Phoenix has posed:
"Think on it, anyway. If you're confident you could get here in time and you're comfortable with that, fine." Jean says a with a quiet sigh. "I'm not trying to be your worrywart mom. The offer is there, though. At least a cabin is excusable as a little summer vacation to anyone watching. And the kids usually don't venture too far there."

Psylocke has posed:
"I'll take the cabin. I understand why you are worried," Betsy says as she finds the spoon and stirs her tea. "Thank you," she murmurs as an side before continuing with the conversation. The spoon is set aside on the saucer then she sips the tea before speaking again.

"It is a concern someone got to one of us. Considering when it happened, I have to wonder if it has something to do with the Hand instead of our normally enemies though."

Phoenix has posed:
"It is. Thankfully, you're the only one that Jeremy's picked up on. So whenever this happened, it seems isolated so far." Jean takes a slow sip of her still hot tea. "I'd have a hard time expecting them to be able to arrange or execute something that fast and covert, but if they would have help then it's not impossible. Hopefully coincidental, though. We don't need them having access to tech like that or the means to use it."

"I'll head out after we're done to get the cabin set up for you. I check on them every so often when Logan's busy to make sure everything is good, but generally no one messes around out there." For obviously resident grouch reasons.

Beast has posed:
The door to the Meeting Hall opens up to admit Hank, the blue fellow checking out the room to notice his friends all gathered at one of the tables. Making his way towards them he says, "Hello, my friends! How are today?"

Under his arm is a laptop computer. He sets it down on the table and asks, "May I join you? Got a little bit of prep tonight for next semester."

Cyclops has posed:
"Hey Hank. Just the man we were looking for." Scott says as he eases back into his chair, glancing over toward his blue best friend. "Betsy has a bit of an issue going on and we need your help."

Phoenix has posed:
Jean Grey looks up just before the door opens, and she's already grinning by the time the blue doctor arrives. "Hank, you have impeccable timing, as always. You'll probably see my message once you open the lid. As Scott said, we were actually hoping to get your help with something." She gives him the chance to actually sit down and get comfortable before she says, "We've learned that Betsy vision and safety was compromised. Her eyes, specifically. They were replaced without her knowledge with mechanical ones, and worse, they've been transmitting what she sees to some unknown individual or force somewhere in space."

Psylocke has posed:
Some people have a gift for summaries. Betsy has never been one so it is good Jean is present. "That covers it brilliantly," she murmurs before taking another sip of tea. "Good to see you, Henry. I managed to get some testing done through some of my sources back home. I was trying not to trouble people around here with it but it has become a situation where I can't continue. The danger it presents to everyone around me is too much."

She glances his way but he might notice she doesn't focus on him. It is more in the general direction of him. "One of our technopathic students found them. On X-rays and such, they seem normal due to an organic shell I guess. I don't understand it, of course. The student has them turned off for me while I am here so everything isn't transmitted. Which has me effectively blind for the time being. We want to see about getting them removed so we can track them to their source. But I would like to have some plan so I can see once they are removed as well."

Beast has posed:
Taking a seat, Hank looks between his buddies, smiling at them until he hears the bad news about Betsy. Then his face turns into a deep frown. "Your eyes have been replaced?" He asks. "I'll need to do a full workup, but it's possible to replace your eyes with cybernetics. I'd like to get with Forge regarding that possibility." He pauses, "Or perhaps grow some cloned eyes for you. That is theoretically possible, too."

"I'll see about running every scan I can to track where their signal is heading."

Cyclops has posed:
Nodding his head, Scott says, "Yeah, at some point her eyes were replaced with cameras that is recording everything. But they pass for normal eyes with the exception of our student catching it and shutting them off. It sounded crazy until it actually happened."

Rubbing his face, he lets out a loud sigh as he leans back into the chair. "So now we just need to get your big brain involved and try to figure it out. I'm going to contact Josh Foley and see if he can .. uh .. heal her eyes back once we have the bad ones removed."

Phoenix has posed:
"We'd thought about bringing in Forge as well. So we're all aligned there." Jean looks marginally relieved at that as she takes another sip of tea. "This is one of those times that having a backup for a backup plan is a good idea. Right now, we're going to try and keep as much of this 'in house' as we can. Going to others is likely just to get too many involved with limited information and it also would risk tipping off whoever is on the other side of the signal. Once we know, then maybe we can determine the risk levels on if anyone else may be impacted and speak to others then, particularly those with spacefaring contacts. From the way this sounds, it's going to be a bit of a field trip to confront the source of this."

Psylocke has posed:
"The student, Jeremy Statton, was able to trace the signal. It is alien in nature. The technology used as well. It goes far into space and he managed to track it back and get a single image from the opposite side." Betsy offers the explanation then offers that visual telepathically so that Hank has it as well. It is the face of a large yellow alien with his eyes permanently held open by some sort of clamps. Those in the know would recognize Mojo. He is an unknown to most of them thus far.

Beast has posed:
"That's a great idea, Scott!" Hank comments when his friend brings up the mutant healer. "Hopefully he'll be able to cause you to regrow your eyes."

Beast leans back in his seat and shakes his head, "The idea of someone being able to get to one of us is quite frightening. If it is extraterrestrial in origin that would explain some things, but getting through your defenses, Betsy, that must take a tremendous amount of skill and power."

After getting the picture in his mind he nods a few times, "Strange looking creature. We'll need to see if we can find out anything about them from our contacts."

Cyclops has posed:
Nodding his head, Scott says, "Very terrifying if he was able to get to Betsy, who's both a ninja and a telepath. It makes me concerned that parts of her memory has been compromised as well."

There is a pause, then slowly he glances over to Jean, brows lifting up behind his raybans. "Have we tried that yet? Do we wanna send Jean into your head and see if something is wrong? This doesn't happen normally, losing your eyes to a yellow alien in space."

"Someone replaced your eyes and removed the memory? Or created a different memory. We have the second most powerful telepath in the world right here." He says as he motions to Jean.

Phoenix has posed:
Jean Grey slants a look back towards Scott and then back towards Betsy. She tilts her head as she absently chews the inside of her cheek while she weighs the pros and cons inside of her head.

"Well, so far, there's no indication that switching these off is causing alarm bells with the offenders. They haven't come knocking. Yet. So long as I'd only look and not try to manipulate anything, then I shouldn't set off any tripwires in theory. If I see anything we want to uncover, though, I'd rather not do it here in case if that brings someone running. We already have Creed in the basement, I don't need an alien army in the hallways too. Though if that happens, remind me that he's there so he can stand in front."

Psylocke has posed:
"I mean you are welcome to look but I have tried to explore." For Hank's benefit, Betsy reiterates some information she shared earlier with the others. "I was in a fight with the Hand a couple of months back. I won but in the process was knocked out. About 24 hours later, I woke up right where I had been. I didn't think anything of it really at the time. Now, it is the only 'lost time' I have that I remember. Being unconscious, if it did happen during that time, there won't be any memories to find sadly."

She nods. "We should definitely do it away from here if we opt to try that though."

Beast has posed:
Hank remains quiet, relaxing in his seat as he examines his friends. Right now Betsy and Jean might have the best idea and it wouldn't do well for him to butt in there.

Phoenix has posed:
"You may not have active memories, but subconscious ones could exist." Jean says to Betsy from across the table as she taps a finger against her teacup while she things. "Like suddenly remembering a dream, or a noise you heard when you're half asleep. Right now any clue as to what we're dealing with is something. So how about this for a rough game plan."

"Hank, while Betsy is here, see what you can determine about the makeup of these false eyes and our chances of being able to restore natural or cybernetic ones. We'll tag in Forge. He can help with further insight as well as the cybernetic route. Once we know the physical, I'll check the mental. Scott and I can go get one of our bolt holes in shape so we're away from the school and then I can see if there are any further clues to find. Once we swap out her eyes," Swap, not remove, and she places particular emphasis on that. "That's for sure going to alert whoever this is. So once that's done, we need to be ready to either head them off or get to that source and handle it before it comes to us. Anyone seeing any holes in that plan?" She looks particularly towards Scott at that question. He's the tactician in the room.

Beast has posed:
"Sounds good to me, Jean," Hank says to his friend, nodding his head faintly. "I'll need to check you out in my lab, but we'll do that whenever you're ready. I'll want to run full diagnostics on the eyes, try to pick up anything about them that I'm able to."

Cyclops has posed:
"Okay, so let's do that then. Tomorrow, I want the three of you in Hank's lab. Take Jeremy with you." Scott says as he pushes himself upwards. "Since right now he's the only one that can disrupt the signal. We may need to turn it off and on during the procedure or at least the deep dive."

"I do think Jean should poke around first, her or Charles. At least make sure that if we do mess with her powers, it doesn't cause a bomb to go off. That'd be upsetting." Taking his coffee from the table, he draws a sip from it. "Let's get some sleep guys."