8318/Undercurrents: Den of Snakes

Undercurrents: Den of Snakes
Date of Scene:	14 July 2019
Location:	Nachesko Building, Mutant Town
Synopsis:	Cannonball, Jubilee, Beast and Armor track down missing Xavier students to a den of scum and villainy, drugs and prostitution.
Thanks to:	Cannonball, Jubilee, Beast, Armor
Cast of Characters:	Aquaman, Beast, Jubilee, Cannonball, Armor
Tinyplot:	Undercurrents

---

Aquaman has posed:
Hank's suggestion to use Cerebro to find Nadia and Sarah really was the most efficient way to go. The Professor took only a few moments to track them down to the Nachesko Building in Mutant Town.

Nadia is a 15 year old blue eyed blonde who looks like she stepped out of TV suburbia. She has been at Xavier's for two years and had a history of minor issues. Running away, drinking, much older boys. Sarah was a haunted looking 15 year old with brown hair. She has been at Xavier's for a year. Before coming to the school she had moved through foster homes, last chance schools and youth programs. She dabbled in escorting for an adult 'boyfriend' to pay for drugs and clothes and has been a hardcase.

The Nachesko Building is fairly notorious. Owned by someone overseas, a dispute with the city left the site abandoned for years. People had stripped the four story building of anything valuable, right down to the copper electrical wires. It was a squatters haven. Rooms were used as homes, flop houses, places to deal and just about anything else. People made fires in open areas some times and it was strewn with the detritus of stolen bikes, clothing, camping gear, electronics and shopping carts.

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy came along in this trip, and in fact offered to drive, because he's taking the whole thing personally. But on the way, he looks to Sam. "I'd like you to be the field leader on this. I'm here to assist at your direction. I have the coordinates, and the comms, all taken care of. How we handle this, is your call."

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee was, of course, keen to go help round up the girls. "The sooner we find them, the sooner we can get them back to help them. Even if we have to tie 'em up to do it," she chirps from a front seat, a slight scowl fretting at her usual chipper demeanor as she watches out the windows.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will nods to this and says "Sounds like a plan, we will go in to talk at first. Ah don't want to fight with the residents unless we have to. Both Nadia, and Sarah are both still underage so if they are still here when we get there they are coming back with us. Jubilee, AH know not exactly the scene you have experience with but if you get the feeling of anything off Ah want you to know. Hisako your on Jube's back, no powers unless we have to, but if shooting starts, I want you two to grab the girls and get out under protection of the armor.

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki is all suited up. Slick, tight black and yellow, covering her from neck to toe, with yellow boots and gloves, and a yellow X-Men baseball cap. She sits with her legs crossed, eyes closed, mentally preparing for combat. "Understood," she nods to Sam without opening her eyes.

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy didn't want to fly out here in a helicopter or something attention getting. But a large, black van works. Enough room for the team, the gear, and a place for people to change if necessary. He's up front, following the GPS to get there. "How close should I park, chief?"

Aquaman has posed:
Traffic is light at this time of morning on a Sunday. Not many people are up and about at 7 in the morning. It is unlikely anyone will notice them coming toward the building.

A week or so earlier the Nachesko Building was attacked by the same type of spider bots that attacked a mutant caravan near a subway station. Nothing much has happened since and it is likely the building's rotating cast of characters is back at it.

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee winces at the mention of gunfire. "I think we should definitely go with the diplomatic approach. These girls are victims, and you can be sure they feel that. Even if the downfall was of their own design. The more we can convey that, and let them know we just want to help and protect them, the more ground we may cover to close that chasm between them and us."

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie nods, and says "Ah am hoping there will not be a fight, but if the guys selling the drugs are there, there might be issues we can not stop, and Ah would rather be prepared for it than it surprise us." He looks to Hank, and says "Give us about a block, but put us on the side with the fire escape, that way more ways of approach are underview.

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki has had it made clear to her that going openly suited up is not the plan. So, she grabs her backpack and ducks behind a screen, long enough to get her school uniform put ontop of the suit. Hat removed entirely, unfortunately. So it just looks like she has leggings on. A little much for the weather, but what can be done? "Ready," she says softly.

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy nods "Right, chief." And he will then pull the van up just as directed, though it takes a minute to find a place to slip in without being so obviously triple-parked that they'll get towed away. "I'll stay in the van as backup. Too obvious for what you have in mind. Radio if you need me."

Aquaman has posed:
A man sleeps in a heavy jacket against the wall outside with a shopping cart full of stuff beside him. The doors are unlocked. Inside is dim, most of the windows are boarded up. The smell of street feet, urine, sweat and burned crack oozes out when the doors are opened and is cloying inside. The walls are damaged and covered in graffiti. Garbage has accumulated by the walls and the lino on the floors is soiled and dirty. Ceiling tiles are missing, split and empty black wire sheathing hangs down in some spots. There is a large wet mark with mold growing on the wall to the left of the doors. There are hallways and stairs.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie walks along leading the ladies at first. He makes sure all of them got coms from Hank before they made their way into the building "Ok, unless we need to split up, Ah want to keep us together." He will start to walk down the hall, seeing how many looking into the first room, and sighing softly as he realizes "We are going to need to room to room, this." he will tell them.

Jubilee has posed:
"Most likely," replies Jubilee, dressed in a tight pink tee shirt, jeans, and boots, with a yellow jacket beset with bronze gears, buckles, and toggles. Her hair is put up in twisted pigtail buns, with little tendrils escaping here and there. "Unless we offer someone a twenty to give us a little...direction."

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki hops out carefully, holding her skirt down, ready to follow the rest. "I'm with you Jubilee." she nods. "I haven't been in a class with either of them so...I can't help well in talking with them. If there's a need to fight, I'm here."

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy stops the engine, but all the systems inside the van are independently powered. Slumpting down a little, he lets them out. "I'll keep a bead on where each of you are through the comms. IF any of them get jammed, I'll alert the team to your last location. And at will I'll go Kool Aid Man if you need backup. Good luck."

Aquaman has posed:
The first room is pilled with junk and there is nobody in it. Working down the hall on the first floor finds doorways blocked off with blankets, people sleeping inside in sleeping bags or on dirty mattresses or ratty couches. A few stir, one man with sores on his face wakes enough to tell Sam to fuck off. The first floor does not look especially settled and judging by the condition of the people here, they are at the bottom of the hierarchy.

. A man with neat hair, a collared shirt and loafers in his mid-40s comes down the stairs. He is a bit red in the face and does his best to avoid eye contact as he walks quickly to the front doors.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie just shakes his head at the man who tells him to fuck off. He does look to man coming down the stairs and nods a bit "Well guessing we might find them up a bit higher." He will lead the ladies to the stairs, and starts up listening to the noises of the building, seeing if he hears anything of use. They used to call his ears car doors after all.

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee reaches up and adjusts the brass goggles atop her head, bridging the gap between her pigtail buns, and she watches after the neatly dressed man with daggers in her eyes. Then she looks back up the stairwell with a sigh. "We gotta find them," she says with gravelly frustration in her voice. "This has gone way too far."

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki comes in right behind Jubilee. She feels uncomfortable without her armor on in these surroundings. Fists clenched, arms folded, she is very stiff and visibly alert as she follows behind Jubilee. "Agreed. We will win," she says in a quiet, crisp voice.

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy radios in, speaking quietly out of instinct even though it would just be in earpieces for them. "Keep going up. Third floor... probably to your left. I'm looking at the fire escape, and hoping it would support me to climb up to you in a pinch. IF not, it'll take me a moment to go around, and up."

Aquaman has posed:
The man in the collared shirt catches the looks from Sam and Jubilee. He looks away quickly and picks up his step. When he pulls his hand out to push the door open his gold wedding band catches a glint of morning sun.
% The stairwell reeks of urine and more graffiti adorns the wall. The formerly cream coloured painted concrete is an uneven brown.

When Sam walks onto the third floor he comes out in the elevator lobby. Some sunlight comes down the hall that runs in two directions through an unboarded window at one end.

Two men in their early 20 are sitting on a tattered blue couch looking at their phones. Both are dressed in a jeans, sneakers, t-shirts and ballcaps. One is wearing sunglases inside and is covered in fine brown fur. The other look human.

"What do you want?" the furred one says in a high pitched squeak of a voice with an upnod to Sam. His friend looks up and when Jubilee and Hisako come in, looks them up and down with a grin creeping across his face. He gets up from his chair and comes to walk around to look at the two ladies from all sides. He has particular interest in Hisako.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will move to intercept the man before he can get near Hisako. Sam's demeanor changes from cautious to protective instantly.. Hisako can take care of herself, but she is a young girl in a bad place, and some habits should not be broke. "Ah'm looking for two of my friends. " He will describe Nadia and Sarah briefly. Sam looks at both men coldly. They owe me." He adds in, not on what they owe him, but leaving it open.

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki is by now not at all unaccustomed to the idea of her skirt getting THAT kind of attention. But yes, fortunately she knows just how to handle it. Fists re-clenching, she eyeballs right back the guy eyeing her, lips pressed tightly together. Staying behind Jubilee, she does walk forward. Eyes never letting off of the man. "Can I help you?" she asks through gritted teeth.

Jubilee has posed:
"Ooh, Hiya cutie," Jubilee coos, intervening around Hisako, tilting her head and looking over the furry guy on the couch. Sam has the first one in check, so she moves a little closer to the guy on the couch. "What's your story?" she asks the furry guy. "Mutant? Do ya just have fur, or can ya do...special stuff?" she asks with a waggle of her brows.

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy listens as he can, watches where they are, and prepares to move in whenever he needs to. "Steady Hisako... Sam, keep it up..." Jubilee's comments get no audible response from him.

Aquaman has posed:
The man moving to look at the ladies frowns and tries to push Sam backwards.

"The fuck is your problem?" he snarls.

Furry's expression turns deeply suspicious. He lets out three short sharp squeaks. At the same time as he reaches to pull Jubilee into his lap, planning to hold her there. Tightly.

"Don't know what you're talking about. You're a motherfucking pig, you /stink/," Furry says darkly to Sam.

Down the hall, a female voice is making noises somewhere between zombie and porno film. Another older sounding female voice is putting on a much better show. She sounds like a robo-porno. Further down, a third female voice yells in sudden pain, and a male voice laughs.

A short, ripped looking man comes out of one door, followed by a taller greasy looking man with an unkempt beard and huge furry ears.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will step aside at the attempted push. Sam is not the push over they may expect him to be. He will grab for the man's wrist, and move to place a kick into the man's knee. "You have two choices. You can tell me where they are, and I get what is owed me, or I can leave you bleeding on the floor, and find them on my own." Sam tries to put all the coldness he has seen Logan use in his voice as he tries to make it sound more he is stating a fact than making a threat.

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee gives a sharp cry as she is pulled onto the lap of Mr. Furry. She isn't sure how strong he is, but she doesn't especially want to find out. Better that he decide for himself that he doesn't want a pyrotechnic kitten of his own. She opens her hands against his arms as she grips them, and begins to release tiny flashes of plasma against his fur and flesh. They detonate silently between her hands and his flesh. But for her part, Jubilee doesn't let on that she's doing anything at all, as she looks around to the incoming others.

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki doesn't wait anymore. She's standing somewhere between Sam and Jubilee, watching each of them, and just, well, armors up. Raising a good foot off of the ground, shimmering lines of light surrounding her. She inhales deeply. "And if we have to do that, you won't like how I do it."

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy heard all he needed to. He climbs out of hte van, locks it up behind her, and start bounding up the fire escape, using window ledges themelsves when he has to, in order to get up to the third floor, bursting into the window. "HEY KOOL AID!" he grunts.

Aquaman has posed:
Unfortunately Sam has neither the look nor the size to intimidate these men. Dirty, the guy faced off with Sam, is like an immovable object. He is strong enough that he keeps Sam from moving his arm as if Sam were a very small child. As a result, Sam is just not proper in place for his kick and connects with nothing. Dirty turns and swings a big haymaker for Sam with his other arm. Something about his movement just feels heavy.

Furry looked like he was going to say something then yells in pain and pushes away from Jubilee like she was a hot coal. He clutches his right arm instinctively and opens his mouth. An ear-splitting sonic blast shoots in the direction of Jubilee and Hisako.

Greasy hears Hank and turns around. He seems to grow more muscular and runs at Hank like he plans to tackle him. Short and beefy punches into the wall and rips out part of a 2x4 that he brandishes like a club. He stays put for the moment, caught between two fights.

A young guy with a crew cut and an older guy with horn rimmed glasses poke their heads out of separate rooms. The young guy is struggling into shirt. Neither has shoes on. They both into the hallway and sneak along the wall looking for a way to make the stairs.

A guy that looks like a stick pokes his head of the room where it sounded like someone was laughing. He ducks back into the room. A moment later a male voice roars.

"Who did you fucking call?!"

A young female screams in pain. "Nobody I swear," the female voice sobs.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will roll with the punch the man throws at him, taking just the barest connection, but even from that one he knows, he does not want to feel another. He drops to one knee, and does something most have not seen him do, a power stunt he has been working on. Sam throws a rocket punch towards the man's mid section, if he hits a little low, he aint upset about that. "Beast Hulk Jr. is yours, Jube, you got Fuzzy Wuzzy. Armor want to show Beast how to properly Kool Aid man it." He motions towards the wall, the stick man and girls seem to be behind.

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee tumbles backwards as Furry shoves her off. She somersaults backward a few times to make sure she is clear of his reach and then, as she bounces up to her feet, she can barely hear the command over the ringing in her ears and the ear-splitting screech of Furry. She has to get him quieted down, one way or another. She lifts her hands quickly and fires a barrage of plasmoids. Dozens of roiling blue balls of plasma hurtle toward the Fuzzy One, in an impressive volley of violent heat, as she takes a few steps closer to him again, careful to stay out of reach, as she shoots a look at Hank to make sure he isn't in over his head.

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki sees that Jubilee has things well in hand herself, and Sam is handling is, so even before she got her orders, she's coming at the guy in her way from the bac. Shaping her armored hand into a claw, she uses one hand to tap on his shoulder, and when he looks, she gives him a very honrable punch in the face.

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy is starting to make his way toward Hisako. So the first thing he does is give Hulk Jr a big shove. If he's Hulk Jr, Beast is Hulk 3/4. Goal is to get the one Hisako is attaccking, back to back with Hulk Jr, so the two can be eliminated as a group.

Aquaman has posed:
Dirty was not at all ready for Sam's new move. The punch continues on past Sam. When Sam hits the jets, Dirty is sent off his feet and up through the wooden structure of the ceiling and floor above. There is a big thump and shouts of alarm from the fourth floor.

Beside the couch, Furry really has nowhere to escape to. His deafening sonic blast turns into just plain screaming.

2x4 sees Hisako coming, because glowing armour. The 2x4 breaks against Hisako's armour when it hits. He steps back and avoids getting punched. He is brought up short when Hulk Jr. slams into him from behind. He nearly falls on his face. Even with momentum Hulk Jr was not stopping a 10 ton push. The young and older guys with no shoes flatten against the walls as Beast hurtles past, then break for the fire escape.

Jubilee has posed:
    "Ohh, now..." Jubilee chides, trying to put zip ties on Furry's now singed and furless wrists. "I dont wanna hurt ya...Just be a good boy, and I won't have to use the big guns."

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie is tempted to blast straight towards the sound of the girls, but put too many holes in the walls, and this place may come down around their ears, and Sam is not really able to choose between support support beams and normal things it all gets taken out. So he will head into one of the other rooms and take a moment to knock on the wall to find space between the 2X4s and hope it is a clear path to the other room, before kicking in his blast where it should be a bit safer.

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki looks at Hank, and sees about taking care of this pair they knocked down. "I can hold them down..." she offers to him. "So you can go look for them..." SHe knows he knows what they look like, after all.

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy has an idea of where their girls are. So he starts to move, seeing that Hisako can hold down the attackers. And well, guess what? He's not trying the knobs. He's motivated, as Scott learned earlier. He's PLOWING right through doors. Sorry, but not sorry, for the inconvenience.

Aquaman has posed:
When Sam goes into the first room, where the young guy came out, he sees Sarah. She is sitting on the edge of an old mattress. She is dressed, and just finishing pulling her tank top back in place. She moves slowly and looks at Sam dully. She walks slowly over to Sam, not recognizing him, and fumbles at his belt buckle.

The room the older guy came out of has theee people in it. The odour in the room is pungent, like the residue Hank smelled at the X-Base. One woman, crack skinny, is laying in the mattress on the floor half clothed. A guy and a girl who look to be in their late teens or early 20's are passed out together, sitting on the filthy floor against a wall.

A guy in his late 20's in jeans and a white t-shirt with some minor blood spatter on it looks out of the same door the tree guy looked out of. He sees the mess in the hall and makes a break for the fire escspe.

Furry offers no resistance to Jubi at this point. The two that Hank and Beast dealt with are in the ground glaring murder at Hisako.

"Gonna fuck you, bitch," 2x4 sneers at either Jubilee or Hisako. It's not clear which.. "Gonna find you and fuck you till you /scream/."

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will not go through the wall finding Sarah here, no, upon finding her here, he will take her hands and softly says "Sarah no, it's Sam. The whole tough guy persona gone in an instant. There is part of him, that wants step back out and throttle the young guy, but he instead pulls off his jacket, wrapping it around Sarah. "Were here to take you home, Your gonna be ok." He will try to lead her from the room.

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee slips away from Furry and down the hall to the last door, since Sam seems to have the other room under control. She stops at the edge and peers around the door frame to see what she's getting into before walking in.

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki adds Jubilee's target to her list of people she's sitting on, in some cases literally, to make sure they don't go calling anyone or attacking her friends. Crossing her legs, she particularly glares at the one who was staring at her earlier.

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy didn't find any of his students, but he found a pair. So guess what? The guy gets hefted up and tossed out of the room , and he starts searching from room to room, tearing doors off of hinges on purpose, just to be a jerk.

Aquaman has posed:
The running man at the end of the hall makes it out onto the fire escape and disappears from view.

Sarah follows Sam docilely out of the room into the hall. She looks around without much curiousity.

The passed guy Hank tosses hits the floor in the hallway like a heap of wet towel. He hardly stirs. A needle falls out of one hand.

Hank finds a room with two young women, maybe 18 or 19, curled up on a ratty couch. One looks street entrenched, the other like a nerdy hipster. They are both unconscious and the room smells like the drug Nadia and Sarah had.

The other rooms are empty but that last one has Hook scrawled on it in sharpy with devil horns arching off the o's. Whoever looks inside will see Nadia curled up on the floor against what must be Twigs by the look of him. Twigs looks worried but judging by how slowly he looks over, he is super high.

"N'm flaut," he mumbles and chuckles. "Hook, yeah."

Nadia is dressed, sobbing quietly and has a bloody nose she is not even trying to staunch. Another girl, maybe 17 is sitting on a red couch looking at her phone while a guy her age beside her stares at the ceiling. Neither really pay attention to the new arrivals despite the commotion outside.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will look over, and cal out "Time to Go, Beast, Armor, carry the girls who can not walk. Jube's you help guide the ones that can." Hank put him in charge, and while he agrees he wants to trash the place now is not the time. "We get the innocents out of here, and then we can come back, and make sure this place is no use to them, ever again." He has an idea on how to help with that, but that's a thing for later.

Jubilee has posed:
With the promise of food, Jubilee seems to get more response from some of the more despondent girls. She zip ties Twig's wrists and brings the others out of the room, even if over their protests. The drug seems to make them compliant enough. "Let's get these home," she says, still herding them out.

Armor has posed:
Hisako Ichiki will help carry out a person as needed. As she does, well, the guys she was sitting on get a view. Which they enjoy.. right up until she gives each of them a good swift kick in the side, so she leaves a trail of moans behind her. And not the good kind.

Beast has posed:
Henry McCoy will carry out Nadia and the other girl who was with her, both in his arms, lifted and placed over his shoulders. Gently, but yes, they are carried out. He smiles as Jubilee makes good use of her zip ties, and leans over to murmur "Make sure it's on tight." before making sure the girls have room to sit in the van. Along with Twig, whom he'll definitely want to question.

Aquaman has posed:
Nobody fights or objects. They are too high, too scared or too docile to resist. The group gets some vaguely curious looks on the way out, but people here know better than to stick their noses into other people's business. Soon they are crammed into the van and driving away.