1924/A Dangerous Game: The Game Begins

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A Dangerous Game: The Game Begins
Date of Scene: 10 August 2017
Location: Mexico, Occupied Aztec Temple
Synopsis: A group of Mystique's associates have been brought together for one purpose: to exterminate mutant slavers.
Cast of Characters: Mystique, Emma Frost, Domino, Hellion, Magneto




Mystique has posed:
@emit
    A helicopter had been chartered, and when Mystique's little gathering of people had all met, she'd flown it over the border, calling in the appropriate designations as a vehicle of the Mexcian Army. They would not be further bothered, as apparently the codes she used acknowledged a measure of radio silence thereafter.
    Documents had been left for all of them, pictures she - or someone - had taken of the base. Of the thick walls, and anti-artillery weapons. The tank. The armored vehicles. And, the number of armed men with various guns, RPGs, and other tools at their disposal. This is no small time crime lord they're taking on.

    As she sets down the helicopter at a clearing about five or so miles away, she tells the group with her, "The Mexican armed forces will be conducting a raid at the same time. They have been made aware that General Chavez has reached out a small group of mutant mercenaries to assist as they do not have the military strength to take on this member of the Cartel who is branching out into slavery. They're not happy about it, but, well, General Chavez has been," and here Mystique smiles, secretly, "Very adamant at your assistance." Smoothly, she morphs into the General and gestures, "Our ride is up this way," she indicates. Sharp eyes can detect three vehicles as the reach the apex of a hill, Mexican miltiary, waiting for the general. And his 'mercenaries', the mutants.
    "It does not matter if the military lives, or dies. Those that live, our lovely Miss Frost shall be - mindwiping, completely." Those who know her well know, though, that either the General is already dead - or, he's going to die by some nefarious means. She leads them on, to a small group of Jeeps, each one already with a driver. 'The General' climbs into the front van, and in front of 'his men', he calls in a thick spanish accent, "Remember that you are here on the invitation of the Mexican Government," 'he' warns, a show for the men. Gotta sell the act, afterall.

Emma Frost has posed:
    Emma sighs out softly, head shaking as she clasps her hands over one knee. It's not exactly -difficult- work, but it's a touch tedious to be rewriting the minds of the hapless soldiers in real time. A few little mental snips and polishes, and they simply don't recall anything about the mutant group. Which Emma must admit to herself, is for the best, given her attire. While she'd -like- to go with something properly stylish and memorable, given the 'slave camp' and 'assault mission' situations, she's simply gone for a clinging white bodysuit, sleek and shining, leading down to matching white boots with a dramatic lift and heel. She falls in step with 'The General' and gives the faintest of nods at the show for the troops, before taking her own seat.
    Of course, her own focus in the mission, aside from protecting herself and leaving no trace of memory of them behind, is to simply observe Julian. One must, after all, grade one's students and their progress in academic -and- practical skills. Of course, she can't precisely include this in his grade transcript, but Emma's sure she'll find some way to make his grade known to him.

Domino has posed:
Domino studies the photographs provided, quickly committing them to memory. She's also looking through the pictures of the fortification, checking for floor plans. Hard numbers of troops and ammunition. Persons of interest to target in specific.

She also looks up at the others around here. She doesn't specifically know most of these people. She doesn't know their fighting style, their capability in a war zone -- and glancing at Keller -- their experience level.

"So, are we going to pop your murder cherry tonight kid?" she casually asks Julian with a smirk. "Try not to wet 'em. Considering who we're bringing, you're gonna wanna burn your clothes after we get done. The smell of freshly opened human intestines doesn't come out with club soda."

She then looks to Emma, and the others. "Do we have a plan or are we just going to run in there and start shooting? Might be nice if the telepath, if she is so inclined, keeps us mentally linked. We're less likely to get some friendly fire up our collective asses."

Mystique has posed:
    The Generals men are located in a small, but well armed band hiding out in a spacious rocky alcove beneath the old temple. A tank of theirs has been hidden in the foilage, as well as a couple vehicles and all the men, about fourty or so, are heavily armed with automatic rifles, hand-grenades, and combat knives.
    The Mayan temple that the enemy has hunkered into has been - well, taken over. Men with automatic rifles patrol the outer steps, and there are two tanks parked in the yard along with several armored 4x4 vehicles, each with a mounted artillery gun on the back of it. Barbed wire has been run all across the circumference of the ancient temple on the outskirts to ensure that any acivity is corralled through the front, which is exceptionally well guarded. The open doors to the temple, at the bottom, and the top, and the barrels and boxes near them suggest there's more men, more activity within the temple. Whoever has this under their control is -extremely- well funded.
    'The General' tells the mutants gathered, "We will engage them from the north - the front as they'll expect. You, hit them from the west. They will be trapped within their own confines. We will burn them out." He points his fat finger against the map they have, and then shoulders a high class sniper rifle onto his back. Apparently 'The General' is not going to be up-front and personal, like his army. "Stay on the radio." He taps the headset he has, and passes out a headset to each of the mutants present. The General's men, though? Apparently they already know what they're supposed to do. Or, maybe he's just going to bark orders at them.
    "Remember," the General tells the group, "Everyone in there is expendable. Except the prisonsers." 'He' means the mutant slaves. And Mystique has made it clear to all the 'leader' is hers to deal with.
    Then, the military are moving out, getting into vehicles, climbing into the tank. Marching forwards. 'The General' hops into his Jeep, and it drives to a pre-destined position where he can snipe from. One need not guess that the poor driver who had the misfortune of being Mystique's chauffer will likely be dead, before it's all over.

Hellion has posed:
     The young telekinetic studied the dossier, though Hellion would be focusing on making sure he kicked enough ass that he proved he would be an asset to those that invited him.

  Julian looked back to Domino, as he kept up. "That's right. And I can't think of anyone more appropriate to spend it on." He says with a boyish smile. Headstrong, and powerful, should prove to be a deadly combination. He looked to his attire, red and black, emblazoned with a horned 'H' on the chest. "I rather liked these clothes too...screw it, I can get another one. "

Emma Frost has posed:
    Emma gives a nod to Domino, even as she's putting on her headset, I can keep us in communication if need be... but we may want to use these in case things become... eventful enough I need to focus on a more active role, hm?" She stifles a little sigh, and -most- of the eye roll she wants to do. Oh Julian. You are... so you. Still, she has faith that he'll deliver on that bravado, if only to avoid displeasing her.

    She slides up next to her student and lifts one eyebrow ever so slightly. "I do hope you're not planning to wear it out to New York? I mean, red outfit, horn motif... I can think of at least -one- person who might take exception to you stealing his gimmick, darling." Certainly, they're about to unleash bloody havoc, but still... she can't -not- needle her student. Perish the thought. Still, she starts focusing now, all the better to pick up any thoughts coming from ambushers or any other trickery.

Domino has posed:
Domino decides to think really loudly and see if Emma picks it up.

((You think Pool Boy here is ready for this? There's a big difference between saying you can kill, and the psychological backlash that can when it happens. Not to tell you your job - but keep a mental tab on him, Frost. He might need it. I hope he doesn't.))Oo. Domino thinks, looking directly at Frost.

Jullian gets an approving smirk from Domino as she unholsters a heavy caliber handgun. She's going through a quick equipment check, and she's loaded for everything short of Master Mold. "Play your cards right and you might get more firsts tonight." She winks at him with a smirk. Yeah, she's playing with him. She figures he needs a little more rev to the ego. Get him pumped up for the slaughter.

Ka-CHAK. Safety is off, and she's ready to go. "Lucky dragon: engaged."

Mystique has posed:
    "Move," says 'The General'. "We'll give you ten minutes. Then we begin. Be in position by then."
    The waiting for Mystique, for the men who believe she is General Ramirez is not a difficult thing. It's what they're used to. Waiting for the opportune moment. TThe ten minutes pass and the military's tank begins the attack with an opening salvo directly at the front entrance to take out one of the militant's armored vehicles, and the man around it. Then, all hell breaks loose. Gun fire begins to erupt, vehicles storm the forest, sliding through the estblished tracks from the gun-running and slave trade by those occupying the temple already. Those protecting the temple begin to rally, very well. As if they were trained, and not mere thugs, or gangsters. But, ex-military. Or black ops. Their vehicles are grabbed, engines gunned, and they move out into the forest to meet that of the Generals Men.
    Mystique leans forward and slits the throat of her driver, cleanly, and then pushes his body out of the vehicle before moving to her own position, even as she drops the disguise of the general and takes on the shades of the foliage around herself for far better camoflage. She had already spotted from her sniper's perch, already even secured a mount for the rifle. She settles into the ground, fitting the sniper rifle. And, taking careful aim.
    Boom. Headshot. The last guy getting into the enemy tank suddenly falls backward, before the enemy's tank's lid closes. It immediately begins to salvo the Mexican Army's tank, seeing that as the biggest threat. A straight on shot, and the Mexican Army just lost their major weapon. Guns blaze from the vehicles, back and forth. Semi-automatic rifles go off, here, and there. A mexican foot soldier instantly falls backwards -- it seems Mystique is not the only sniper.
    So far, none of the enemy's men have seen the mutants who are the Mexican Army's secret weapon.

Hellion has posed:
     Hellion looks to Emma, his cobalt eyes having a fire that she never really got to see before. "And that's why -I- am your star student and not the one who got made into a TP mummy." Had he actually been on campus that night, there wouldn't have been an issue with the X-Men vandals.

  Julian again looked his teacher in the eye. "Aww, and I thought you liked the Hellion look. You know I'm not much the heroing type. And besides, the Daredevil doesn't have shit on me." Julian chuckles, before his eyes flashed with green light. "Yellow and blue never looked good on me anyway."

  Domino would certainly get a wink from the telekinetic, if only because he almost always felt like king of the mountain. He punched his palm, almost just wanting to take off and fly, but he had been focused on making a good show of all this, he needed to.

Emma Frost has posed:
    Emma can't help it, slipping a little thought to Domino,

    ((Well, if he's as ready as his self-confidence claims, we could probably crack open a bottle of wine and just let him run around like a hyperactive child... you know, a murdering hyperactive child.))

    And then Emma's focused on -walking-, such a mundane, terribly boring portion of these 'adventures'. Getting to the agreed upon position as she runs through battleplans almost idly. Diamond form? Certainly flashy, and bullet proof, but... her -outfit- is really more bullet resistant, and it did cost... well, okay, not enough for her to worry about. But it's the -principle-. Still, with a slow, steadying breath, she figures she'll stick to telepathy and psionics... after all, she might be confident in Julian's potential, but she -does- have to keep that reputation of being superior and worthy of teaching him. If only because he's so delightful to keep around for that zeal. "Yes, well, that -was- always my plan. Xavier's fashion taste shall ensure I always have some number of students, hm?"

Domino has posed:
"Students. That's kind of funny to me," Domino idly comments as Mystique cuts the driver's throat. Blood runs down through the floorboards as the man bleeds out, slumped over.

She looks up to where Mystique has just salvoed the tank. Not bad. Dom makes a mental note that there is at least one seasoned professional onboard apart from herself. She can't judge Emma just yet, and Keller's getting his field trip in.

"Never really got to enjoy going to school. Runaway, made to order soldier, you know how it is." She's still coming to grips with what Sabretooth showed her. It's both focused and disturbed her, but not enough that she won't be able to carry out this mission. She was getting a little bored filing TPS reports at Wayne Enterprises. She had some bullet-related itches to scratch.

"ETA?" she asks upfront. She has to admit: She kind of misses this. If only there were a big grumpy half-metal psionic driving this thing.

Mystique has posed:
    A helicopter is suddenly in the distance, getting closer, and closer, very, very quickly. It's hard to say at this point which side the helicopter is on as it's only a dark figure, nose facing so any markings impossible to see.
    An RPG is fired from the temple, and several clustered men from the Mexcian Military are caught in the explosion that takes out oen of the armored vehicles that'd slowed to turn and get a better angle. It's clear that the men of the Mexican Army are outnumbered, and outmatched. There can be little doubt, in Emma's mind at least, Mystique wanted just enough men about to give a distraction for her hand-picked team to get into prime positions and just begin to tear them apart. To stir up the hornets nest, and get as many of them buzzing, and out in the open, so the fly swatters could take out the highest number possible.
    Boom. Another headshot. RPG guy falls over, dead.
    "There's quite a few still in the temple," Mystique tells the group.
    Boom. Headshot. The driver of one of the vehicles on the enemy's side slumps in the driver's seat, and the jeep crashes, hard, into a tree sending the other two men sprawling into the air, into the ground at a high velocity. If they've survived, they're most likely heavily injured. "Moving to the base. Do your worst. It's time to show Ms. Frost you're worthy of her time, boy."
    The enemy's tank moves forward, booming salvos and artillery towards the few remaining clumps of men, scattering them. Finishing them off, one by one between the remaining vehicles, armed men on foot ...
    ... and the helicopter, which descends upon the attacking forces of the Mexican Army with an unforgiving gunfire from the two massive cannons tucked under the mini-wings, and the fixed anti-vehicle mini-gun mounted on the left port side.

Hellion has posed:
     Julian took to the sky, taking a page out of Magneto's playbook, and with a wave of his hands, picks up one of the armored vehicles.

  Julian almost couldn't believe he was doing this, in a good and enthusiastic way. The telekinetic heaved the APC at the helicopter. There was no use for subtlety when you have the power to move things with your mind, especially very very heavy objects.

Emma Frost has posed:
    Emma focuses her own abilities outward, on one of the slaver troops with an RPG. It's not even a terribly -forceful- thought she implants in his mind. Oh no... simply an accidental slip of his finger to trigger the round as it happens to be aimed at his comrades. And then she's chirping out dryly, "Oh yes, -do- please both focus on impressing me, dears. That is, after all, the true measure of success in a rescue mission. Being the one who gets my... oh so personal thanks, hmm?"
    And, with subtlety out the window, there's no reason not to walk brazenly towards the wall of the camp, Emma reaching out again with her not quite so often used telekinetic skills... but then, it doesn't take -skill- to be a battering ram. Just a certain amount of focus and force.

Domino has posed:
"Hey Keller! Keep score, if you get a higher body count than me I'll buy you a bottle of tequila that would make Huitzilopochtli cry tears of joy!" Domino shouts out to the younger man. Yeah, she's spent some time in Mexico. Drawing a pair of twin handguns, she runs towards the temple's opening.

"HOLA PENDEHOS! SMILE AND SAY HI TO THE VIRGIN FOR ME!"

Domino is going in loud, creating a diversion, drawing attention to herself and away from any of the rest of the team that wants to try a more Solid Snake approach. A few soldiers are momentarily distracted by the black and white woman rushing through the waist-high grasses as she charges them with guns out. A few start to open fire, bullets whizzing through the fresh green blades, mowing them down, every shot just narrowly missing the mutant merc's body.

She opens fire, grin wide on her face, stopping to point and shoot in the general direction of various bodies. She doesn't even stop to aim. It doesn't matter for her. Every bullet is hitting their mark, blood erupting from heads, chests, arms -

-- and one lucky shot that travels straight into the loaded barrel of an RPG, igniting it in the hands of the soldier holding it.

Mystique has posed:
    There's a very loud scream that dies in the distance as one of the men in the armored vehicle lifted by Julian falls out about 500 ft in the air, before the vehicle slames with an even louder crunch and groan, whine, of the helicopter before the huge metal hulk begins to plummet to the earth, too fast for anyone who might've survived the collision inside to get out, and the large explosion cause attention to be given to the west. Bullets fly at Julian, whose suddenly become the major source of attention, << MUTANT! BRING HIM DOWN AND COLLAR HIM! >> shouts one of the men in Spanish, pointing at Julian. A sniper shot is taken, this at Julian's kneecap to do just that.
    With, at least as best as anyone can tell, the entire force of the Mexican Army now wiped out. But that frees the mutants to do as they please. No witnesses will remain. Just as Mystique planned it.
    RPG guy's finger slips, sending three of his friends nearby to their untimely demise and his own, as it was aimed just at the wall in front of him where they'd been packed in tight; the first direct damage taken by the ancient temple. Stone and wall crumble, smoke.
    Then, a net-bola is thrown at Emma as the woman brazenly walks towards the base. Apparenlty they want more mutants. And, Emma would fetch quite the prize for their little slaver pool, no doubt.
    At the cry of mutants, four large mech-suits, occupied by drivers now slowly file out of the temple's base, each with a massive array of weapons, each of them costing a cool hundred million or more to create. It would seem the group is pushing as hard as they can, now, to endure, and to get themselves some highly sought after prize money if they can bag this group.
    A series of shots fire behind Emma, about 20 feet behind her, ... and the man with the net-bolo takes a bullet to the forehead, slumping down. Mystique has made her apeparance again, an automatic rifle in both hands and a band of ammo thrown around her chest, bandolier style. "Now things are getting fun," Mystique says to the White Queen, her yellow eyes glinting.
    And then there is Domino, creating chaos, and even more explosions at the entrance, all eyes turning towards her at her brazen entrance. Emma and Mystique are almost forgotten about until Mystique hammers down on either trigger, with reckless, gleefull abandon and Emma uses blunt, brutal telekenetic force to rip things apart. The tide is most certainly turning.
    At least, until the mechs start priming to target everyone...

Hellion has posed:
     "You're on, Dom." The teen replied with a smirk. Hellion kept himself a good distance up in the air, he could better use his gift up there.

  Jules made his way closer to the action, holding a hand up in front of him, stopping the bullets as they fly to him. The teenager motions his hand closed, and bursts it open, sending the bullets flying back where they'd come from. He'd go for chest shots and heads here. "Vaya al diablo, Perros asquerosos." Hey! He did learn something at the Academy!

Emma Frost has posed:
    Emma just sighs, throwing up a simple invisible pole of force in front of her... letting the net wrap around it snugly and then letting it fall to the ground. "Really... slavers. So -unimaginative-." She sighs and looks at the mechs trundling out. "Well... this might be interesting after all." She starts picking off the small fry, the footsoldiers with guns... and she's not being subtle. Oh no, she's -fully- happy to let them keep their awareness that it's not their own mind making them point those guns at themselves and fire. And, of course, she keeps an eye on Julian... he's certainly earning marks for enthusiasm so far, and really, that -was- her main concern about this. She sighs again... well, at least Julian apparently -did- earn his grades in Spanish legitimately. That's certainly being noted in his file.

    But those mech suits look a little worriesome, and so Emma foregoes telepathy for the moment, shimmering into a faceted gem of herself, her diamond form far more durable and physically forceful than her telepathy. She even gives a friendly little wave to the mechs... may as well mock them before their day is ruined, yes?

Domino has posed:
"Forty-five! Pick up the pace Keller or you're gonna owe me a favor!" Domino continues to run towards the building, sweeping to the left and looking for the outermost mech. As long as she can keep moving and shooting, she can get it to start firing. Find out what it can do. Find out if it has any weaknesses. Demonstrate them to the rest of the team. Luck will keep her, and buy extension her team, alive.

Magneto has posed:
That this band is better prepared for metahuman attack than even the ample recon might have indicated is something that Mystique, and others amongst the Brotherhood, accounted for. Watching-- perhaps more accurately sensing-- the battle unfolding below is a lone figure lost high amonst the clouds, undetected by either side, unknown, perhaps, to all but one below. His psionic signature is hidden all but completely by the carefully crafted Corinthian helmet he wears, his exercise of power restrained to let the feint unfold. ... and, perhaps, to allow ample test to the combatants partaking in this particular crusade.

The army strike team exhausted, the reinforcements taking the field, the Master of Magnetism sets his own cue from on high. The first mech twists suddenly to target the one behind it, wrenching actuators out of range, seemingly without hesitation, and discharging high-caliber autocannon behind him, obliterating his comrade in a shower of depleted uranium.

The shoulder-mounted missile launchers fire on the third in line, their payload whirling pointlessly skyward... before locking onto entirely the wrong targets, and peppering the mechs' egress with their own artillery fire, fiery explosions of their own making obscuring the trio left.

When that smouldering cataclysm clears, two of the remaining heavy armor units are heavily damaged, lurching to recover their bearings, and the third's cockpit seems to have spontaneously decided to murder him, its reinforced framework bisecting the fellow in no less than eight points of impalement.

Mystique has posed:
    The bullets begin to fly back, slamming into unprepared flesh. And while some of the men do have combat armor on, and the bullets are fully absorbed, several are caught off-guard, and fall down dead. The bullets stop coming Julian's way in favor of something else -- something all too simple. Light refraction. The clever bastards are attempting to blind the hell out of Hellion, and ruin his sight, and thus, his impact on their presence while they try and backpeddle to gain a better foothold, already realizing how quickly they are losing ground. And, losing the fight. Even now, facing those losses, in the face of the power of the mutants, they're not relenting, or panicking. A sign of a hardened troop.
    While Julian is being blinded, one of the remaining mechs fires a large claw at him, designed to capture flying mutants, entrap them, and then reel them back on a steel fiber wire, the spool in the back of the mech, while the only other survivor opens up it's firing arm towards the center, spraying bullets at Domino, and by their proximity, Emma and Mystique as well. Mystique can't shoot a mech with her automatic rifle, so instead she recklessly dashes forward as Emma goes all shiny diamond, taking the window she can. Sure, she can regenerate but that doesn't mean she ever -wants- to. Bullets still hurt. A lot.
    Domino continues to literally be a one-woman army, dropping the foot soldiers, born and bred soldiers like they were clay pigeons and she was out on the field for target practice, which also helps Mystique to get closer to the base.
    Over the comms, Mystique greets, "Magnus. You always know how to make an entrance." There's an almost dark, sensual glee to Raven's voice, in her undertone. "You remember Neena. And Emma. And, this is her new student. Julian Keller." She does not seem surprised, in the least, Magneto is here. Then again, she /did/ mention that the enslaved mutants would have a way back to Genosha, didn't she?

Hellion has posed:
     "Forty." Julian quips, before he'd felt a sharp sting on his knee. He'd never been actually shot before...the experience was quite overrated. At least Hellion was lifting himself, not standing on a platform. The mech suits certainly did enough to make him pause as he held his left knee, only enough that he couldn't believe his eyes..

  That was before he'd been blinded, gloves hands held up in front of his eyes to avoid it, but he had been grabbed in mid-air. As he was being reeled in, Julian clenched his arms, working against the claw that had enveloped him. A small shockwave erupted from his midsection, ripping against the claw's pincers, freeing the telekinetic. Once he's free, he holds two fingers to his ear. "You mean..." Yes, that was exactly who he thought it was. Julian wanted to be more composed, but that was Magneto! The Magneto!

Emma Frost has posed:
    Emma clicks her tongue sharply and murmurs out dryly, "Now now, you'll have time to ask for an autograph -after- the exercise is complete, Julian. And don't think I didn't see that bullet hit you. You're lucky it hit your knee... well, relatively." She stalks forward now, clearly figuring Magneto's going to handle the heavy artillery, and... well, she didn't really expect her suit to survive past the opening salvo, so as bullets tear at fabric only to plink off her diamond skin, she's not -that- annoyed. Just enough to walk up to any soldier foolish enough to get close and cave a sternum or two in with fierce if not entirely well-trained punches. She might have to consider getting some training if she's going to be getting so -hands on- in the future.

Domino has posed:
There's only one person Domino can think of that can make metal armored divisions spontaneously seppuku. She stops in her tracks to watch the censor-friendly robot gore unfolding in front of her, momentarily caught offguard.

Situational awareness kicks back in immediately. For a split second she wishes Nathan was feeding her 360 combat data in a mind-to-mind connection, but she'll have to make due with standard human senses for now. She's gotten along okay with them so far.

Keller's being blind-grabbed. Mystique and Emma are in the path of heavy gunfire. Her neural processes are sped with so many points of information to keep up. She doesn't realize it, but her eyes, ears and other senses are taking in thousands of moving objects at once and calculating a safe trajectory through all of them, motor control nerves ready to automatically move her in the perfect direction.

Two mechs left standing, one damaged and ready to fall, the other still in reasonable shape. Thanks to Magneto, she knows what they can do now. She has to calculate the odds of achieving her objective. Too high and even luck can't save her lily-white ass.

Number one's wrenched gears skreel loudly as it shudders and turns to aim a capture claw at Domino; she waits, and as it fires, she jumps. The claw plows into the ground beneath her and she lands on the wire, tossing aside a spent weapon and grabbing hold. It reels in, carrying her up to mech. She leaps onto the top of its cockpit, and fires down into a gash opened by Magneto into its control center, as Number Two raises a submachine gun arm at Emma and Mystique.

"Here goes everything!" Domino shouts, shooting down into a torn open section of metal.

It explodes.

Pieces of number one fly into number two and lodge into its side, hitting missile pack, which causes it to instantly go off, fireball flying into the sky. The entire forward armor plate of number one sails through the air and lands with a solid thud DIRECTLY in front of Emma and Mystique, followed by the hailstone rattle of DU rounds from Two slamming into it seconds later. The two are shielded by dumb luck.

Fire and smoke curl upwards - but where's Domino?

Magneto has posed:
The bullets fired-- by both sides-- suddenly take on a mind of their own, more often than not. The slavers lay down covering fire, meant to allow the infantry to retreat to a hardened position within the temple, to hold off their foes or perhaps to extricate their slaves and ill-gotten wealth-- it's difficult to say, and it does not matter.

Their weapons discharge fire, and turn inexorably against them. That fire whirls back around on the shooters with more velocity than when it left the muzzle, the rounds tearing through armor and flesh with little difficulty, ricocheting off temple walls and tearing down the corridor, leaving a scene of rather blended body parts and blood-spatter.

The claw that Julian extricates himself from similarly wheels around as if fired back at its source-- clamping around the cockpit of the firing mecha and inexorably closing, crushing rather than capturing, this time, metal teeth biting into freshly ruint metal hull with a tremendous, violent shriek, Magnus seemingly entirely contented to add to the apocalypse faced by the pair of remaining mecha. Those in the midst of the shrapnel may be shielded solely by blind luck... or opportune bubbles of repulsive force.

The smoke rising into the clouds seem to part with the cloudcover itself, a crackling blue-white sphere the visible aspect to the Master of Magnetism's descent, as a nearby sniper, concealed by a reinforced perch high along the temple approach, suddenly finds himself slain by the point-blank discharge of his own sidearm placed against his own, biological temple. His voice does not yet crackle across comms-- Magneto lets decisive action speak for him.

Mystique has posed:
    Possibly the one hope that the other side had was gone, when Magneto appeared. A very slim chance still had hope when the claw connected with Julian ... only to have him explode it around, and the tension of the wire snaps back, the mech sputtering and sparking even more.

    On the ground, Mystique and Emma finish the last few soldiers off around them, Mystique dumping the two semi automatic rifles now that they're depleted of ammunition and instead she picks up two pistols, and a combat knife. A holster is made, along with a black leather combat suit, but her full mutancy is on display so the people know who did this to them, before they die.
    The two mechs are blown to smithereens, partly due to blind luck, and largely due to Domino's skillful application of that luck, which leaves Mystique to wonder just how much control Domino has over her entropy manipulation.
    With a final few sprays of bullets, and Magneto's masteful magnetic manipulation, many managled mercenaries are made into morbid meatbags.
    For the first time since the first gunshot rang out, the air is quiet. Eeriely quiet. Save, perhaps, for the sound of crackle, and fire from those things burning, like the mechs, or the crashed helicopter in the distance.
    "I imagine there's a few left in the tunnels," Mystique says, conversationally over the comm system. She begins to walk in, towards the darkness.
    There are dim lights, set up. Crude, but functional. And deeper into the guts of the temple as they go without molestation from the band - who -must- be all gatehred together for one last stand if there are any remaining - Mystique leads everyone forwards until they come to a cluster of cages. Mutants, collared, in those cages. About thirty, all told. Each of them having a very vivid mutation, physically, from colorations of skin, animal likenesses, or pure oddities like mostly covered in bone. Their spirits, for the most part, appear broken. But their eyes, dimly interested in the mutants - collarless, and having heard the above sounds. None of them speak. Not yet.

Hellion has posed:
     ((Shit, she saw that. Shit, she heard that!)) The head of a teenager is often filled with things that most adults don't want to know or vice-versa, this one was no exception.

  Hellion simply made his way off, he followed inside. He needed to see the horror for himself and bear witness to the foulness that was humans. He was already worked up enough that anyone standing in his way or firing weapons would be pushed, slammed, broken against any wall, door, or sharp object.

Emma Frost has posed:
    Julian is -so- very lucky that Emma's diamond form blocks her telepathy... at least until she drops the form once the air is still and they're heading into the tunnels. She frowns as she shifts back... and wraps an arm across her chest. "Really now... did they have to aim so -specifically-?" She sighs in irritation, still, she supposes it's better than being riddled with bullets herself.

    Emma looks over at Hellion, lips curving in a thoughtful little frown. Really, she's not worried about his slip-up, after all, she was a little... rusty herself when she was held at gunpoint a few weeks before. And he certainly didn't balk at doing what was necessary, which had been the entire point. But she'll have to needle him a -bit- for getting shot. His self-confidence is high enough.

Domino has posed:
Domino coughs. Dust crumbles down from sparse light above. As she shot Number One, the weight shift caused an ancient trap door to open, causing her to fall through into the darkness below, missing the fiery explosion and, unfortunately, Magneto's save attempt. Snagged by half rotten roots and vines that grab onto her and slow her fall before giving way, she is forced to take a moment to push herself up onto her knees, before standing.

Nothing broken? Good.

Sidearms still present? Good.

(( Everyone okay? )) she thinks to Emma. (( I accidentally found the special stage. Taking a look around. ))

Magneto has posed:
Bursts of gunfire, caches of soldiers fleeing back to fortify who seem to have done their own squad in, these are the grisly sights, rather than deadly challenges, that greet Mystique's entourage as they penetrate to the heart of this unspeakable prison. To the cache of human valuables that were the focus of this group's tragic activities.

No booted footfalls announce Magneto's passage down those same corridors mere moments after the others-- despite the enclosed conditions, the Imperator of Genosha floats upon the scene, drifting languidly above the ground, his arms crossed before his powerful chest.

The first announcement of his arrival is likely the shorting out of those lethal safeguards within the collars to prevent their removal... and the clatter as the devices fall wholesale to the floor, their enhanced-strength resistant bands broken, wrent asunder.. not unclasped.

"Today you cease being tools of a system that loathes and abuses you, and being your life as free mutants-- stand beside us, my brothers and sisters, and realize the future of humanity. The future your captors feared. The future that is so plainly /ours/." Lensherr is willing to break the ice; and how, melodic baritone crisply projected, sincere passion lacing the words.

Mystique has posed:
    "Your freedom," continues Mystique, looking at each them, "Comes, at the final strech, by your own hands." Mystique hands the hands guns, the knives she's gathered, to the closest mutants near her. "There is only one way to end your torment. To make you whole, now." She circles them, her bright, inhuman yellow eyes peirecing them all even as they pierce the dim light, "They now know the fear they have set upon you. They cower, in the dark. They, now, know what it is like to be hunted. To be set upon. They put you here because they are -afraid- of you."
    She moves to the man, the taller mutant who appears to be the most receptive to her; perhaps the one the other once-enslaved mutants looked to for direction. "Once you are free, Genosha awaits you. Where you can heal. And be with your own. And be free." There is a tender, almost sensual touch of her slender, soft fingers to the other mutant's cheek, before she nods to them. "Use your abilities. Use your weapons. Leave no -human- alive. And embrace your future." Domino, then, would be spared. Much in thanks to her pale skin, and black eye mark.
    She looks to Julian and Emma, "Gather the collars. We will need to study them." She looks sidelong to Magnus, "Salvage what we can. This is only the begining."
    Almost as one, realization, true realization begins to dawn on their faces, they exchanging looks. And, then they begin to nod, slowly. Agree with each other's thoughts. And the mob begins to move down into the tunnels where they saw the three bodyguards, and the leader of this militia run to.

Hellion has posed:
     What had awaited the young mutant inside did not disappoint. It steeled his resolve and caused him to sneer with hate.

  The telekinetic's mood had changed, when Magneto set them free, and Mystique gave the former slaves the tools to forge their freedom. It was like some kind of novel, and it got the young mutant more motivated than ever. Julian held his hands forward, picking up small groups of the collars from the cells, until they formed one large floating pile. "You've got it." He offers, bringing along the former tools of oppression. If only for a bit of hero worship, Julian attempted to float off the ground as Magneto did, holding his hand behind him, 'dragging' the collars with them.

Emma Frost has posed:
    Emma moves smoothly to begin collecting collars, even as she resists the urge to simply... convince the mutants they're freeing to go with Mystique. She figures the blue skinned freedom fighter can more than handle recruiting captured prisoners to fight against their captors. And so she focuses mostly on collecting them as best she can with one arm... occupied holding her outfit together.

    Of course, she can't leave Julian alone, her mind reaching out to numb the pain of his wound. Not that she announces she's doing it of course. One must keep up uncaring appearances, even when everyone that's not on the team or being rescued is going to forget anything ever happened here.

Domino has posed:
Domino wanders out of the old Maya tunnel in time to hear the impromptu militia coming. It will be a bloodbath.

She stands in the darkness, away from them all, watching the freed slaves exact their brutal revenge. There's screaming. The wet sound of flesh being torn and joints and cartilage being pulled apart. The gurgling of blood filling lungs. She might as well be a ghost in the darkness, white face the only thing really visible in the darkness thanks to her gear.

The words from above echo down; she can hear the propaganda. These people are tired, hurting, ready for their vengeance, but none of it sits completely right with Neena. She leans against the wall and watches. She does not stay their hand, but her heart hurts.

There is no going back now. She forces herself to watch, to let her heart hurt as the victims are weaponized to someone else's ends.

The avalanche has started. It's too late for the pebbles to vote.

Magneto has posed:
With an all-too-casual gesture of one hand, Magneto sets his abilities to dismantling the rather remarkable cages that had previously held his brethren. Even if the facilities were not redundant enough to handle a failed collar on a mighty mutant, the statement should be made.

That these alloys -are- rather unusual makes them valuable to other projects, and the entire set folds together as if made for it-- or newly melding, piece to piece before floating down the hallway of their own, or more accurately Magneto's accord. "It will take some time for it to become real, for them to remember who they were-- or realize who they now wish to be." Erik muses quietly, his own floating course taking him up beside Mystique,

"They have earned their vengeance, time will tell whether it leads any of us to either peace or purpose." They may follow him, her, all the more easily now-- but blind adherence to any dogma has seldom been the Master of Magnetism's stock in trade. "Let us take our leave of this place with everything of value to our cause, my dear." He politely advises Mystique, any fervor behind the apparent directive couched in the familiar and warm. "You have done well this day." Magnus offers to the others gathered with them, "No being should be forced to scratch for survival in such bondage."

Mystique has posed:
    "The rest of you are welcome to either join Magnus on his journey to Genosha, or return with me to New York in the helicopter. I have a momentary business to take care of. General Ramirez needs to be killed by Carl Ross."
    Carl Ross. The son of a near billionaire who has, for years, sunk massive amounts of funds into the Friends of Humanity to seed their hatred, who just happened to be in Mexico at this time -- that would have nothing to do with a lovely, lovely dark-skinned woman inviting him down here for a little lurid vacation.
    "It will become apparent that General Ramirez sought to free the mutants, and - the son of the cable network mogul arranged to have him bombed in his home, in the aftermath." Mystique is rather pleased with herself.
    She doesn't blink an eye, as the freed mutants tear apart the remaining people. "And," ventures Mystique quietly to Magneto, as well as the others, "The path they choose will be their own. But, they will find healing in Genosha." As if suggesting to the victims they do have pure freedom. That they are no longer tools.
    She looks at Emma, Julian, and Neena each in turn. "You all did a good thing, this day."
    She nods her head to Magnus, then, telling the group, including the victims, "Strip it down. Save any computers, laptops, or tablets. They'll have lists. Of buyers. Buyers we will need to -- visit."
    "And then, we will begin the downfall of these infernal collars."

Hellion has posed:
     Julian smiles wide, he hadn't thought that he would enjoy this kind of thing as much as he had. He would have to make sure he made himself available like this more often. Who knows, he could be the strongest telekinetic one day. Not that there are many of them in mutantkind.

  The young man nods to Mystique. "My pleasure, thank you for the invitation." Admittedly he was now certainly less braggadocios in front of Magneto. Then again, the boy did have at least three shirts that exclaimed the man as being right, so Emma may not have been too surprised by his reaction.

Emma Frost has posed:
    Emma rolls her eyes at the sounds coming from down that hallway. "I swear, -this- is why I prefer to lead from the rear. My wardrobe would never survive all of this... mess." She sighs out and murmurs softly, "Well, I suppose we can take you up on the trip to New York. I'm sure we can simply take my jet back to Metropolis tomorrow."

    She can't help but smile the -slightest- little teasing smile at Julian. Oh yes, she recalls those shirts, and Julian's excitement at meeting Magneto himself is almost too grand... well, she -certainly- hasn't got to worry about him ever joining Xavier's crew. Perhaps she'll try to let him go on these little fieldtrips more often, even.

Domino has posed:
Neena's more somber. She says nothing, accepts no congratulations. She doesn't feel much like celebrating anymore.

As she walks past the others, she stops just next to Keller and looks over at him, managing a little smile. "I'm still ahead in the body count by three, but I'll send you a bottle of AsomBroso Reserva Del Porto anyways. You earned it."

She takes another step, and looks Magneto right in the eyes. She's not entirely happy with him, and it's visible, but there's no aggression or threat in it. Just dissapointment.

She looks away, and begins to silently gather up the tech equipment, working fast but thoroughly. Today was a victory for her, but a hollow one.

Magneto has posed:
Keller's obvious affection and Domino's obvious disaffection stand in stark contrast to one another. The former, Magnus does not encourage but neither does he express umbrage regarding-- it's become somewhat par for the course, even if his opinions on dogmatic worship are somewhat implicit. To say nothing of painfully established, over the years.

Observant as he can be, Magneto has little idea what bee has climbed into Domino's proverbial bonnet, however, and while he meets that study evenly, stoically, steely eyes showing none of the bloodlust that others in their party exude, but none of the disappointment that Neena's show, either.

What they did had to be done, regardless of the consequences. It's a conversation for another moment, however-- for now, ample hoarded wealth, raw materials, and technology are theirs for the taking. To the victor...