The Mountain Side: Blue Strike Force
With Red Strike Force remaining behind to protect the school, the team full of only the most experienced of X-men, save for Judas who was working with them since he showed such exceptional talent and quick learning, Kurt Wagner was not overly concerned about leaving the school with so little protection during this time of training the newer recruits (along side some older ones in hopes of everyone learning to work together). A slight disappointment was held within Nightcrawler since one of his long-term members had been removed – Connor Enright being the one that switched teams – his father, Logan, knew of the tension between Lachlan and Madison’s brother since Lachlan had hurt Wolverine’s daughter, both physically and emotionally.
With Connor having been through so much stress Logan hoped switching him onto a team with at least people he got along with – and Betsy he was familiar with since she took his Martial arts classes, despite the fact she hasn’t been at the school while he was growing up. Perhaps it was good for Connor to get a change of scenery, interact with new people, Kurt knew well how unsocial Wolverine’s children tended to be. Then again, they needed stability, things keep changing around them, maybe it wasn’t the right time to do the switch, but when would be the right time? They always seemed to be getting caught up in something lately.
Instead of going by jet, Kurt simply teleported his team to the location on the mountain, his yellow orbs were looking off in the distance to study the larger mountain they had to climb the next day. With only five people on the team it hadn’t been too hard to teleport all of them at once to the island, but still the slight headache from the mild stress caused two of the three deformed tips of Kurt’s fingers to rub his forehead lightly while he thought.
There was another pressing matter; all the teams’ locations had been randomly located save for the new Exile’s group, they had to walk down hill for an hour and depending on which routine the team decides to go, will have to end up eventually climbing the main mountain so they could reach the top. There was an actual steep face at one point, a good five to ten minutes of pure climbing around half way up the mountain, Kurt knew of two members that might face a lot of trouble with all this physical exertion, one of which was the 2nd in command of his team.
There was a rule of no powers to be used during the climb, otherwise Kurt would have no problem teleporting Johnny, it didn’t matter, as a team they would manage, though they were quite honestly an incomplete team, they had the least amount of members then any other. Kurt’s tail swayed thoughtfully from where he sat perched on the branch of a tall tree, enabling him to see the layout of the land easily enough, he hasn’t been one of the hunted teams for a good few years now, usually he’s with the groupings hunting, though he did like the thrill of getting his new team to work together and rushing to a predestined location with others chasing their tails.
The long blue arrow headed tail wrapped around the branch he was crouched upon, supporting his weight while the blue elf like mutant leaned back and let his body fall to be solely suspended by the strength of his tail. A moment later he dropped to the branch below him and then began to descend the trunk by leaping from one branch to another until he finally was able to leap to the ground (resisting the ease of teleporting while he recuperated from the relatively heavy mass of the last trip).
“Our options vould be to travel along the edges of ze island, or to go through the centre,” Since Kurt had already explained the mission objects they were down to deciding how they’d set about travelling to their destination, the teleporter’s accent was still heavily soaked with his German heritage, but he managed to pronounce the words well enough, save for the few times he comfortably mispronounced them, more out of habit now then the inability to speak proper English. “Any preferences?” The athletic indigo furred mutant asked with a flick of his tail, a slightly seen fanged smile settled on his blue hued lips as he waited, not informing them of what sort of habitats the island possessed since it was up to them to discover and chart the unknown area on their own – Kurt’s already been here multiple times.
TBC: Blue Strike Force
(Sorry for the wait guys! I tried to post it the last time I was one but the guy that was helping me with all the greek menu’s ate up twenty minutes of my 2.40 for an hour and the ditz closed word after he FINALLY managed to open my posts from my diskette… AND THEN HE CLOSED IT AND LEFT! I mean HONESTLY! Anyway I managed to get it opened myself (only had to guess the meaning of about twenty words to eventually get to my files and open them in word -_-”)
Not for the first time in his life since he had awakened from his coma Johnny Smith cursed the accident that had taken so much from him. First it had taken Sarah and even his son J.J., it had taken his relative normality and left him with these powers he had never wanted in the first place and it has taken weeks of physio in order for him to walk. Now he could walk and it got better with time but Johnny thought he would probably never fully heal and the pronounced limp he had come to live wih was making itself known on this particular mission.
Physically he was in prime health with the exception of the problems remaining from his coma and he had been on camping trips before and on hikes where he had managed just fine so he hadn't thought that this would be a big deal. It wasn't that the exertion would put him out of action or anything, it just made him a little slower than some of the more eager students on this team. He was greatful however for the teleport over since one of the last times he had been on any sort of aerial vehicle he had had a vision of the plane crashing and since then had been wary of planes.
It was a good team, he thought absently looking around at the others. The team's leader Kurt was a good teacher and an all around good guy in Johnny's experience with the blue skinned mutant and he was glad that he hadn't been assigned to a team with a more difficult leader although he liked almost all of his collegues. Their team was small with the two of them and only four students but they would grow and they did have a chance at this thing. Loni smiled shyly at him as she stood nearby. He didn't know the students that well yet but Loni was the girlfriend of Drian, one of the students he was particularly partial too as the younger man was also troubled and cursed with similar powers to his own. Loni's power of dreams and sleep could be handy, he thought off handedly.
Johnny watched as their leader surveyed the land from a high branch and grinned. If all went well he would be able to warn the team of any danger with his powers and Kurt would be able to view the island for any incoming teams as well.
He looked at the remaining team members and his piercing blue eyes came to rest on Murray. The mutant already looked like he could be an obstacle although from hearing about his powers Johnny could certainly sympathise and realise that this student wasn't just trying to make trouble. Trouble seemed to come with him and he saw the glimmerings of fear in his abilities that he knew had been in his own eyes more than once since the struggle to return to normality, the struggle that had been put to rest as he had found his place here among others with powers. No longer was he a 'freakshow' or a guy the sceptics accused of just trying to trick people and gain money although he made no profit from his predictions. Now he wasn't Johnny the unwilling celebrity but Johnny the teacher just as it had been in the old days. It felt right to be here, away from Sarah, Walt and J.J.
“Our options vould be to travel along the edges of ze island, or to go through the centre.” Kurt stated and Johnny nodded. He wondered which way would be safer and if there would be danger or teams to any particular side and figured he could probably at least try to check. It was possible afterall for him to be drawn to a vision by combing a place and going to where his hand would vibrate with psychic energy. This however was where the team part came in and Johnny realised that that would be too easy and could only be used in times of true danger or need. For now the choice should rest with the students, the ones truly meant to bond and to be tested although of course he and Kurt were also tested in this mission.
Loni looked around, surveying the options and looked towards the guys on the team. The guys, how weird was it that she was the only girl? It was weird to be surrounded entirely by guys she thought but not entirely a bad thing. She knew so many of the girls around the school that it was great to get to know some of the guys better and she knew Johnny anyway was a good teacher and a respectable sort.
"It doesn't matter to me guys," she said after a moment. "I'm open to anywhere you guys want to go." It was remarkably open of she who was usually opinionated but she didn't really have an idea here and perhaps one of the others did.
Murray gave his usual shrug and a non commital mumble that didn't resemble any words in the english language. His eyes were downcast and he stood apart from the group which Johnny noticed immediately. His blue eyes glanced over at Kurt as he noticed this and he made a mental note. There was one thing on their team that needed working out already and hopefully he and Kurt could fix the problem and bring their team together.
(OOC: *checks team lists* Hmm Jack is suposed to be on this team but I'd actually really like to play with Johnny for once since he never has much to do anyway...would it be possible to have Johnny here and to switch Jack to second in command of one of the other teams after the missions or something for the next time around? Thank you Oh also while I remember since Johnny's powers tie in with objects the past and future would it be possible for him to have a vision or two before they meet up with a team at a certain place or of a different team having been to a certain part of the island before?)
(OOC: …um… I haven’t used Kane for a while and just realized that dude had red eyes. Can anyone of you remember whether I stated something contradictory in an earlier post?)
At least Nightcrawler’s teleportations were less unpleasant than his own. Whether it was due to his lack of control over it or in its nature, Kane did not know, but Shattering as and remained something not likely to become a part of his list of favorite pastimes. So a survival weekend on the island it was… sounded like a new reality show. Or not that new for that matter. The past weeks had been… odd to say the least. After the incident at the Renaissance Hotel, he had had a lot to think about – needless to say there hadn’t actually been an outcome of this. Save for this revealing vision the sight of Storm had triggered, his memory refused to give away any more information. Frustrating.
Thus distracted, Kane had been even more withdrawn than usual. There was nobody he could have talked about it… not anymore. It were times like this that reminded him of Kiras, painfully pressing the fact of his friend’s death onto his consciousness like a bloody horror movie scene which you want to look away from but continue watching anyway. Just less entertaining. However, he wanted to feel the pain, he wanted to wake up from nightmares forcing him to see this single scene over and over again; different angles of the most important part of his life taken away from him by a cruel fate – live and in color. It was the only chance he saw to assure himself that he was real. Grief like that had to be true, had to mean that at least this part of his past was reality. The question being what was not.
Many times he had found himself staring into the mirror as if his reflection was able to give him all the answers needed, as if it had all those secrets hidden somewhere so that he could find them out by just looking closely enough. Needless to say there hadn’t actually been an outcome of this. At the beginning of February, the one code-named Tempest had decided to take up with training again. The drugs that had suppressed not only his powers but also limited his perception and hazed his thoughts he had stopped taking in hopes of – if he was able to focus – maybe remembering something about Storm when practicing with her. So close to her, yet so far away – apparently, she hadn’t realized what he thought to know… or rather guessed. The difficulty about having contradictory remnants of one’s past crammed together with bizarre visions of glass and monsters is that there comes a point when you begin to have troubles deciding for one version as the truth.
In critical retrospective, the white-haired mutant guessed that the improvements he had made were mainly due to his urge to impress his unknowing mother. Well, that and the fact that Storm was a great teacher. Kane still couldn’t claim to have full control over those enormous powers but at least he was approaching Storm’s level. In fact, summoning tornados, casting lightning or letting rain fall down from a sky that had been unclouded just a moment ago was not the biggest problem – he was doing quite well at that. Making it stop was what caused the real difficulties. The training session with Aurora he had had what seemed like years ago had taught him that keeping his emotions under control was the key, something Ororo had told him as well and that he had actually known himself before. However, where he had restrained from letting his feelings take even the slightest control of him before he came to Xavier’s, he now had to use them where needed and quiet whatever wanted to burst out when he did not want or could channel it into elemental havoc.
Since there was still a lot of training needed, Storm had given him a plain iron bracelet with what looked like a small ruby while in fact it was a button pushing which created a special field that temporarily annihilated his powers. Forge had made the wristlet for his lover when she had been going through a phase of emotional instability to protect those around her and herself and it worked by creating a simple field of energy around the bearer cutting through the connection to the surrounding atmosphere. Contact with nature, no matter in which way, was essential for elemental powers to work and the barrier did a thorough job at preventing that.
Feeling a little safer with it and having the possibility of at least being close to his mother – and thus the chance of maybe finding out whether the Gold Strike Force’s leader really was who Kane suspected her to be – Tempest had left his shell. Just a little, only like a hermit crab attempting to reach out with one of its antennas to check the surrounding waters but still… it was a step. One that didn’t keep him from being impressively antisocial though he did try to better, especially since Storm had told him that getting used to emotions, experiencing them, helped to improve the control over them in the aftermath. For that he needed to be around people – one hardly feels a variety of sentiments being for oneself… yet old habits die hard.
Red eyes turned from examining the area to focus on the elf. It was a little chilly, this day, yet the sun made up for it. Hardly any clouds were to be seen though the strong wind whispered warnings. Kane had always had a feeling for the weather and so he trusted into his intuition when it came to that matter. ”There’s rain to come… maybe going through the center would be better… we’d have the trees as cover…,” his quiet voice could be heard into the short span of silence after Curse’s unobtrusive mumbling. The albino was a little surprised by himself – he didn’t usually tend to be the first to make proposals and was neither overly eager to win nor really interested in this whole training mission at all. Maybe some of the others were though… and so he was at least trying. A fact that almost made him a little proud of himself.
"Everytime I find the answer to one question, a dozen new pop up. It's like somebody plays games with me and my life... I only wonder whether it’d be better if he won or lost."
(ooc- Way to go Matt! Even I had noticed that Kane had red eyes! Me! I mean, it took me around 15 years to notice that there were huge palm trees along the road of the suburb my school is in and I’ve been going through that suburb ever since I was born!)
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Lachlan wasn’t stupid. When he had noticed that Connor was no longer on the Blue Strike Force and had been moved to another team he knew that it could have something to do with Lachlan himself. Whether it was Connor who had wanted to move (though he doubted that), or someone else had moved the young Wolverine Lachlan knew that it came down to what he had done. Sure, it was well over a year back but Lachlan still felt guilty for having hurt Madison and angry for doing what he had banned himself from doing. Yelling. His yells were more powerful that just the words that came out, for it was a power of his. His yells manipulated sonic waves around him, causing a lot of damage.
He knew that Connor loved his sisters and always looked out for them, so there was no excuse why he shouldn’t have gotten angry at him, but Lachlan never thought it would have turned out like this, something very close to hatred had grown from Connor about the fellow second generation mutant and so had a dislike towards Connor grew from Lachlan. Surely he knew about Madison’s personality and her ability for getting on people’s nerves, being her brother and all. Surely he knew how hard it is to get your point across when Madison is too stubborn to listen, especially if you’re trying to stay cool and calm about it all. So the thing that got Lachlan the most was why Connor had gotten so angry with him, and how there was always a thick air of tension when the two were in the same room together. The thing that Lachlan didn’t know was how much he had actually hurt Madison, he knew that physically he had but not to the extent emotionally.
However, that was in the past, even Connor’s move from the Blue Strike Force to the Bronze Strike Force was in the past. Lachlan had to focus on the present, which at the moment was recovering from a slight queasiness thanks to teleporting to the island. Previous to today, he had only been teleported a few times before so he wasn’t quite used to it as of yet and with a teleporter as his team leader Lachlan hoped that he’ll quickly adjust to it.
Feeling a little better, Lachlan raised his head to watch as Kurt began to descend from the top of the tree after he had been using it to get a view of the island from where they stood. He then turned his gaze over to his team mates, although he had been assigned to the Blue Strike Force a few months back the team hadn’t done much so he didn’t really know them all too well and he still felt quite new to this whole teams business. It wasn’t as if Lachlan liked doing things on his own, he preferred being in teams but this was taking him some time to get used to. All the same, he felt honoured that he could be on a team.
“Our options vould be to travel along the edges of ze island, or to go through the centre, Any preferences?” After Kurt had spoken there was a moment of silence, each member most likely thinking which would be the best route. Lachlan never prided himself in being a decision maker and hoped that it wouldn’t come down to him having to chose right after Loni stated that she didn’t mind which route should be taken.
After noticing the small shrug from the corner of his eyes Lachlan noticed how Murray was standing a little bit off from the rest of the small and undermanned group. He frowned slightly, the energy absorbing mutant hoped that he wouldn’t weigh the team down. Not that winning was everything. His mind wondered why people that weren’t team players were placed upon teams for the briefest of moments before he silently told himself off. Everyone had been placed upon these teams for a reason, the all deserved their place even if they didn’t look too interested in being a part of their team. Perhaps Murray would open up a little later, or not...
”There’s rain to come… maybe going through the center would be better… we’d have the trees as cover…,” came softly from the mouth of Kane. Lachlan cheered inwardly since that didn’t leave it all up to him to make a choice. It proved handy to have a weather mutant around, especially when he’s just like the weathermen and women you see on the news, except Kane would be much more accurate!
“If it means we stay dry, then I’m for going through the centre,” Lachlan said, the last of the team to say something about which route to take. This weekend wasn’t going to be a walk in the park and if it was going to rain there was no point in getting wet. It would only make things more difficult for everyone.
Re: The Mountain Side: Blue Strike Force
*Shifty look* Jack is supposed to be here? I thought Johnny was with Kurt … meh, I like Johnny anyway, so *clings* you can most certainly switch.
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"It doesn't matter to me guys," Yellow orbs shifted over towards Loni as she spoke, Kurt’s tail flicked out of habit as he looked forward to seeing what this new team could do together "I'm open to anywhere you guys want to go." Curiously, and not surprised by the attitude, Nightcrawler watched Murray who seemed as uninterested in their mission at hand as he seemed uninterested with so many other things that crossed his path. It was perhaps good that Johnny was here, at least that’s the thought Kurt had as Johnny glanced over the in the blue furred mutants direction. At least Johnny had some handle over the young man to at least push the boy to try and attempt some things, even if it was still with reluctance.
"There’s rain to come… maybe going through the center would be better… we’d have the trees as cover…,”"White fangs where partially seen as Kurt offered a small smile, pride already settling in with his excitement at Tempest’s remark. After all Kurt had very real reasons as to assume neither him nor Marry would participate. At least Tempest was speaking out, that was something, which was also a very big something indeed. Tempest hadn’t been in the greatest of states for a while, and Kurt had hoped, like many of the others, that having the young man on a team would help Tempest more then even the young mutant could hope to imagine at this point.
"If it means we stay dry, then I’m for going through the centre," And finally Lachlan spoke out, although Connor had great anger towards the sound-blasting mutant, Kurt knew there was little trouble in the young man. Everyone had their personal problems, Connor just had to learn to handle his anger towards people who hurt his family, Kurt knew what happened, and Connor was unfair in holding his grudge for what Havok II had done to his sister. An admitted accident on top of it made Kurt only able to hope one day the two boys will finally sort their problems out.
"The center of ze island it is zen!" Called out their leader enough for them to all hear but still obviously trying not to be too loud so not to draw any possible attention towards them. "Best ve all keep ze noize down as much az possible." He added while taking the lead as he started down the mountain. His accent seemed torn between the traditional German English and a more improved version he has gained over the years speaking the language. If he wanted he could speak English quite perfectly, but he always felt more comfortable speaking like this instead of thinking too hard over the pronunciations of every single word.
"Und be careful with your steps, zere are booby traps from ze last missions still scattered over ze island." A worried thought crossed his mind at Johnny getting snared in one, forcing Kurt’s eyes to watch the ground even more intensely as they walked. Of course Kurt felt awful with his constant thoughts of concern towards Johnny, since no one has really spoken to the teleporter about what the man could or couldn’t do, so even though Kurt didn’t want to treat the other teacher any differently, he was finding it difficult not to at the moment.
"Ah, zat reminds me, zey had left our supplies for us hidden at ze base of ze mountain," Informing the others just incase anyone might have realized they where without rations for the weekend, though Kurt neglected to mention it was only water and special nutritional emergency snacks that he doubt they’d thoroughly enjoy. The first few hundred meters were rather silent, Kurt’s alert look out not as obvious as some students have liked, since he looked awfully calm when taking part in missions most of the time, even when they were facing dubious situations. Though it generally was not a good sign when Kurt was stressed, anxious or angry, usually it meant that the mission was going to be extremely difficult or that lives where in danger – usually the lives of people he treasured deeply.
(Sorry I took so long, I brought the post twice over the last week and both times where when the dude deleted or messed up my disk… if he does it again I’m convinced this post is cursed! Either this one or Jean’s! *Gave up on Jean’s since it was saved only on the disk that was deleted*
The next person who posts can have us arriving at the base of the mountain if you want >>
Re: The Mountain Side: Blue Strike Force
(OOC: *nods* Yah I like Johnny too, only benefit of Jack would be having him worry about what Jess was doing but he can do that back at the school )
Murray listened as Tempest made a suggestion about where they could go and felt even worse than he had already. Although it didn't show through his hardened exterior the cursed mutant felt badly about not offering any suggestions to the team, partially his lack of suggestions was because he thought the whole thing was stupid but mainly it was self-pity. Murray was still wondering why he was here, why he hadn't been removed from the team by one of the teachers long before. He wasn't a troublemaker per se but he was lacking in any sort of social skills, especially since his encounter in that other world which had taken the small amount of faith he had had in his powers and in himself. It had been awhile and yet he was still shaken by that image of another wordly him, a him that was completely removed from society due to the destructive nature of his powers. Murray had previously been removed just because he wasn't a people person but now the threat of his powers hurting the few people he cared about loomed over him and he wasn't coping.
How am I suposed to do anything at all when I can't trust my powers not to harm someone, he thought to himself, a new wave of despair washing over him. The dark-haired mutant glanced around the rest of his team. Not all of them were very social with a few exceptions and surely they all had their demons but they could at least offer something to the situation. All Murray could do was be a burden and it weighed heavily upon him, keeping him from speaking up or offering anything helpful.
The blue eyed psychic near him carried similar fears of being a burden, not that either one would admit to it openly. Johnny knew that the limp that remained from that fateful night years ago would be a possible problem for the team and he didn't want to slow them down or to effect their chances but he wasn't consumed by self pity as Murray was. He had come to terms with the remnants of the car crash even if he still cursed them and thought often of what might have been if he hadn't gone home just then. Would he be a teacher happily married to Sarah with a few children, completely normal and oblivious? He had gotten a glimpse into that world just once, a world where there was no Walt Bannerman there to envy and where J.J. knew who his real father was. That world was one he would never be a part of and sometimes it still pained the limping man but he was older and had more life experience than Murray and thus he could better deal with the bitter disappointments that were life.
Johnny listened as Lachlan spoke up agreeing with the previously stated opinion of the weather mutant and smiled slightly. They may be a somewhat antisocial team at times and certainly had their problems, Murray's unwillingness and his leg among them, but they could co-operate if neccessary and in this case it was.
"The center of ze island it is zen!" Nightcrawler, as Team Leader, voiced the decision of the group with finality and Johnny nodded his unneeded agreement. He hadn't touched anything even to check their decision or for weather, afterall his visions rarely were domestic in variety or unneccessary. He got them when needed to help someone or to change something that would cause trouble and it didn't seem likely that there would be an abundance of danger in this training mission although he had been wrong in the past and very well could be wrong now. That was the problem with this Dead Zone of his brain. Unlike many mutant powers he still hadn't entirely figured it out. He knew the basics of how his ability worked but nothing was final and he still learned new things about it with each passing instance of use.
"Best ve all keep ze noize down as much az possible." That statement caught the attention of the lone girl on the team and she thought that perhaps she had been around Drian too much as she used usual blunt attitude in her next comment, "can't really see that being much of a problem." It was light hearted and said with a teasing grin so that she didn't come across as too negative and it was obvious that her comment was meant to poke fun rather than provoke her teammates. None of them had had much to say anyway, particularly Murray, so it wasn't likely that she would recieve a vehement denial in return. It was just an attempt to lighten the somber mood somewhat and she hoped it helped.
Loni had actually been thinking more and more about Drian during the past few hours. He was out here somewhere on the island too and although he had Aisha with him, who was his younger sister in spirit if not in blood, she was still worried. He'd been particularly jumpy after being caught in her nightmare through their connected dream when she had become one of the nine and he had been more affected than she was. He'll be okay, she thought to herself but wasn't comforted. He lived in what was basically a Hell dimension all of his life and he's dealt with nightmares before. What harm will a weekend in the jungle do? Logically it made sense and yet she was still worried and probably would be until she saw him face-to-face whether in a team combat situation or back safely at the school.
"Und be careful with your steps, zere are booby traps from ze last missions still scattered over ze island." Kurt continued and Johnny nodded, his intense blue gaze focused on the teleportation mutant to show he was listening and understood the threat this beared to him in particular. This would qualify as dangerous, I'd get a vision before I stepped into one, Johnny told himself but he was still uneasy about the entire prospect of getting caught. His powers didn't activate at will nor could he force them on like many mutants. What counted as dangerous was still a topic up for discussion inside his brain it seemed and Johnny could only hope that his dead zone would make the right decision.
"Ah, zat reminds me, zey had left our supplies for us hidden at ze base of ze mountain." That's a relief, Loni thought to himself. She didn't want to speak up or disturb anyone but she never ate breakfast, preferring to snack on weekends or to have brunch only and had done neither thus far. She didn't expect much since it wasn't likely that there'd be anything delicious that could be packed away and stored but Loni was often the optimist and at the moment all she could do was hope. She figured by the time they got there she'd be hungry enough to eat just about anything put in front of her anyway.
There were few comments as they continued to walk. Everything was so quiet and all that could be heard were the sounds of wildlife and the rustling of the leaves around them. Loni found it peaceful and beautiful and although she carefully kept her eyes peeled lest there be one of those traps she had been warned about she was also very appreciative of the wilderness around them. Glancing over at Johnny she thought that while he looked a little preoccupied with his thoughts he seemed content as well. How weird is this? she thought to herself. It's like going camping with your boyfriend's dad. Johnny wasn't actually Drian's dad of course but he was the closest thing to it and with Aisha caught up in finding Storm who was the closest thing she had to a mother Johnny had been a mentor to Drian, especially when he was a new arrival to this world. Even though it was weird to think of a teacher as a parent figure Loni looked over Johnny appraisingly and thought that her boyfriend had make one heck of a good choice, she couldn't think of a better teacher than Johnny and respected him immensely. She just hoped it didn't come across as sucking up since she really wasn't that type of person.
Johnny was, in fact, a little preoccupied, remembering the last times he had gone camping or out in the woods. It never seemed to go well, at least that's how it seemed to him. Considering he had had a vision of his death had a certain thing happened one time and had ended up talking to a native from the past and the other time had been held at gunpoint along with Sarah Johnny wasn't so keen on trips into the wilderness. There had been a time when he had been though. Teaching biology naturally led to field trips and to the woods and before the accident he had spent hours in there teaching the students with his unorthodox methods. He remembered shortly before the accident being told to get down from the tree in which he had been teaching about nature by the school's principal but it all seemed so long ago and far away now for him. Luckily the walk wasn't bothering him too much so far although Johnny thought that the cane he was partially relying on as a walking stick probably wasn't helping his impression as a strong member of the team.
Murray was near the back of the group compared to Loni and Johnny and for a moment he wondered if he should walk faster but he was being careful and he didn't lag that much. The cursed mutant glanced around the nature scene and although no one would have guessed it for the blank look on his face he found it beautiful. For once he was something nearing relaxed and the future that may have been with his destructive powers didn't weigh quite so heavily on his mind. Maybe it was because he was relaxed but they seemed to arrive at the base of the mountain relatively quickly. He glanced over at their second in command, taking in the cane and looking over Johnny's face but his dark eyes saw nothing too painful in Johnny's face and he looked away.
"Looks like we're here," Johnny announced. It wasn't a neccessary comment and he recognised that but the silence was strange to him and he wanted to break it and start some kind of conversation however lame it might be.
"Does that mean it's lunchtime?" Loni asked, jumping in to help out the blue eyed mutant. She didn't want to sound too eager though, especially if there was more to do before they got to lunch. The dark haired woman snuck a glance at Johnny to make sure he was alright and although she didn't catch it something flickered through Johnny's eyes.
Why doesn't anyone think I'm up to this? Johnny thought and although he didn't show it there was irritation within. He knew that it was a good thing that his leader and his students were concerned but he was capable of this and he'd been through much worse so the concern was frustrating to him. He looked over at Nightcrawler, careful not to show his inner feelings strongly on his face but instead wondering if someone else would jump in or if Loni's question would be answered and the supplies found.
Re: The Mountain Side: Blue Strike Force
Kane Munroe had never thought of himself as someone special. Or at least not in the positive way people often used that word. He was different, yes - strange, maybe… and definitely difficult. He knew it was probably not easy for others to get along with him but then again, wasn’t this exactly what he intended on getting from this unapproachable demeanor he had grown so used to? Even if he tried, the weather controlling mutant had realized, it seemed impossible for him to socialize yet connected with this thought there was also the hope that with time and practice, this would change. A lot of things appeared to be about this key component: conditioning, training… so weren’t those two days during which he would be forced to work with people for once actually a blessing in disguise, a chance that he shouldn’t be wasting?
*If only it wasn’t so hard…,* the albino thought, red eyes taking seemingly coincidental glances at his team mates. There were only two he claim knowing a bit. Nightcrawler had been his leader since he had first been assigned to a team and although Kane wasn’t entirely sure that he had understood the furred elfish man as a whole, the white-haired mutant trusted him to a high degree – something that hardly anybody still alive could claim. The other was Murray. Strange fate had brought the two young men together on several occasions and although they had never even really approached one another on a friendly basis, Tempest could feel there was at least something as a peculiar mutual interest. What they had in common wasn’t much, as far as Kane was aware anyway which only included their antisocial attitudes, but still…
Yet how high were chances of two emotional failures of society as they were getting in contact with one another. How were they supposed to pass the apparently insurmountable frontier of a barely noticeable acknowledgement of the other’s presence and the odd sarcastic comment? Kane himself had no consciously felt intentions of getting to know Murray better, befriending him even though in fact, it seemed like a logical first step compared to starting off with the “big thing”, approaching one of the cheerful happy-go-lucky type of persons. Not that he was attempting or even thinking about that while they silently climbed down the mountainside. The prospect of food wasn’t overly tempting for the weather-manipulating mutant yet but since he knew chances were that would change during the hours and hours that where still ahead of them, he was glad they didn’t expect them to go hunting or similar nonsense.
In fact, there was at least one team out there not having been given food rations and as Aurora had remarked with a gruff frown, this was just such a typical thing to happen. To keep the spirits up, she would not tell her team’s members that other groups had been given supplies though she doubted that would be something able to get them down… after all, what was there after zero motivation? Unknowing of this, Kane kept himself entertained picturing them chasing rats and trying to tell edible plants and fruits from poisonous ones before Johnny’s voice called him back to the matters at hand. With a quiet sigh, Tempest remembered that this was supposed to be a mission which meant that remaining focused was rather essential.
So they had to stay clear of other teams, hadn’t they? For a brief moment, the albino wondered whether using his powers to locate Storm would mean cheating but then discarded those doubts carelessly. If this was supposed to an at least semi-realistic scenario, there shouldn’t be any such restrictions, right? Still, he wasn’t entirely sure whether their leader would actually want that information. What if he had other plans and he, Kane, would seem obtrusive? Questioning gaze lingered on the elfish mutant as they stopped at the mountains’ feet. ”Should I try to find Storm so we can avoid the Gold Strike Force?” Though his voice was soft and slightly uncertain, Tempest knew it wouldn’t mean the slightest problem to pinpoint this Hunter team’s leader. Her influence on the atmosphere was potent and omnipresent, every breeze she summoned an unnatural change that he would notice if only he concentrated hard enough…
(OOC: I thought this may help to let the Blue SF avoid Gold and Silver (Aisha!) and run into Bronze’s arms… is that ok with you?)
"Everytime I find the answer to one question, a dozen new pop up. It's like somebody plays games with me and my life… I only wonder whether it’d be better if he won or lost."
Re: The Mountain Side: Blue Strike Force
"Looks like we're here," Thoughts of Xavier, his daughter, his friends, all troubles that had preoccupied the blue elf like mutant were washed away slightly to allow Johnny’s comment to sink in. It was troublesome times for the school, these training missions were perhaps an effort to prove that the X-men could still go on without their dearest Headmaster. However the news of Scott’s ill health spread like wild fire amongst the long term staff and the fears of losing one of their oldest friends was growing serious.
"Does that mean it's lunchtime?" Masking the thoughts of sadness with a slight smile given to Loni that only his dearest of friends could see through. ”Should I try to find Storm so we can avoid the Gold Strike Force?” Diverting Nightcrawler’s attention away from Loni for the moment, Kane’s propersition was a welcomed one indeed and lifted Kurt’s mood. Tempest had such great potential and Kurt could see that, every single teacher the German knew could sense it in the boy… but he was so cut off that it seemed at times almost impossible to reach him. But he was being reached, from the first day to this very moment there had been a drastic change in Tempest, maybe not many people could tell this, but as his Leader, Kurt could see it, there was now at least the chance that the young white haired man would start to grow even further into that of a true X-man. All he needed were people around him, people who were there without crowding him, people who he could trust and listen to without always withdrawing or turning away in some form of hesitation or self doubt. And Kane was not the only one on the team who was caged from life by solitude.
"That vould be quite beneficial," Replied the teleporter with an appreciative flick of his tail, the golden orbs shifting over towards Murray, Loni and Lachlan as he added politely, "Vould the rest of you search for ze supplies, vhile Tempest offers his help, Johnny und myself vill keep watch. Find ze supplies und you may have a short lunch break before ve move onvards again." Admittedly he doubted they’d have anyone in their approximate area, however caution was a virtue at the best and worst of times in most cases and he didn’t want his team getting ambushed while focused on searching around for the hidden supplies. After all, it wasn’t entirely fair to just hand it over to them, if they couldn’t use team work to comb the area and find the bags, then they’d have to do without the additional supplies.
"Once you have located Storm’s team, we’ll plan our route to avoid her group vhile eating," Kurt addressed Tempest rather unnecessarily, aware Tempest figured they’d avoid her once he finds where she was, but just wanted to mention they’d do it while resting for a bit instead of before or after. Throwing a look over towards Johnny, a three fingered hand motioning to one of the nearby tall trees that Kurt intended on climbing so that the other teacher knew where Kurt intended on keeping a look out.
"Und keep discussions as quiet as possible, ve do not wish to get snuck up upon." Athletically leaping up onto one of the lower branches while talking, he gave the team a final glance to make sure they understood their orders, before continuing to ascend the tree as stealthily as he was able to achieve.
(if the next poster wishes they can skip ahead to just after they located the bags have everyone finishing up their lunch…kinda lost on what to say at the moment >>…sorry about that everyone!)
Re: The Mountain Side: Blue Strike Force
(OOC: As suggested this is skipping ahead to the group eating lunch.)
Murray wasn't really hungry but he had played along, following the leader then helping some of the others in his own solitary way to find the bags that contained whatever passed for lunch around here. It seemed he was never hungry these days despite being 6"1 and having formerly had a large appetite. The loss of interest wasn't due to anysort of physical problem, although his teachers would sometimes seem to look at him as though their eyes could see right through the steel grey eyes that served to mask his emotions. Some of them would comment offhand to him in concern about how he looked like he had lost weight the in the past months and that wasn't entirely untrue. There was also the fact that he was paler than usual and dark rings currently circled his eyes, a consequence of sleepless nights where he would stay up reading in order to lose himself in the world other than this one. Murray knew when it had all started although he would say it without a strong denial. It had begun with the other world, when he had become haunted for the first time with images of what he might have been and could still become. Even though he had talked to people since then, at the insistance of teachers concerned for his wellbeing, and despite the fact that Murray had been slowly but surely working on controlling his abilities there were still images, still nightmares. The cursed mutant didn't think there was anything scarier in the world than losing control of yourself.
So he wouldn't say it, he wouldn't even dare to consider it but deep down in the mysterious grey eyes and under the fringe of shaggy hair and stubble he was scared. And it wasn't about him, Murray wasn't the egotistical type most of the time. What frightened him most was what he could do to others this his 'gifts' as some people had mistakenly called them. He worried about what would happen if he came home and lost control and if he hurt Jacqueline. It was hard enough to have to worry about teammates and people who might have in another universe been his friends but to worry about his sister was too much to take. So instead Murray took a small bite of the 'nuitritional snack' and hoped that the repetative mindless chewing would take his thoughts away and allow him to escape.
Loni, it appeared to Murray, had a greater appetite and what's more she was friendly, the sort of girl who was popular without being one of the desperate blonde types used on those high school drama shows his sister loved to watch. She'd toss her chocolate curls without arrogance or any thought that she was superior to anyone else and she would take to anyone who talked to her. 'What is she doing on a team with us?' Murray thought to himself. They were such an odd assortment of people, a non-mutant psychic, a blue furry mutant, 2 loners and Lachlan who Murray hadn't yet figured out. As the word 'loner' entered his head grey eyes focused on Kane. It was almost strange how fate seemed to keep bringing them back to one another. Why they two? Was there something Murray was blind to? He grudgingly had to admit to himself that there were similarities in the two of them, anti-social as they were, but even if they were in some aspects two of a kind that didn't explain why they kept getting lumped together.
Then there was Johnny. Almost as if the psychic knew he had been in someone's thoughts his blue eyes rose from his lunch to focus on Murray. There was something unnerving about the way those unnaturally blue eyes bore into the soul and with his powers to boot Johnny was even more strange to Murray. Even though he knew Johnny Smith was no telepath Murray still wondered if he knew more than he let on about all of them. His unreasonable mind didn't even think about the fact that Johnny needed to touch something nor that Johnny only saw important things.
Murray's eyes dropped first from the blue gaze and Johnny looked up instead at Nightcrawler, the team leader. They had been on a well deserved break for a little while now short as it had been so far and Johnny wondered to himself when they were moving on. It didn't really bother him either way since his leg had been managing quite well and with his cane in hand he probably wouldn't encounter any major problems with it. The only thing that might cause problems was his deadzone and it had been blissfully unactive thus far, not that Johnny thought for a second that it would stay that way until the mission came to a close. He glanced down at his leg but rejected the idea of running a hand across it just to make sure. That would only make him look reliant and in pain and the team already feared that judging from their touching but unneccessary concern.
The lunch had been fairly silent with only the occational offhand comment or question asked so it came as a surprise when Loni spoke up. She had finished her share of the lunch, having eaten quickly the share afforded to her, and smiled brightly as she spoke.
"So what's the consensus on the nutritional snacks?" The question was lighthearted but even Loni's naturally cheerful voice sounded somewhat strained and Johnny thought that she was probably having a tough time dealing with the silence and the loners of the team. That was probably exactly why she had been placed here, he thought to himself. 'It's just like in class when a teacher puts a slacker next to a good student, they hope it will rub off. I know I did at first', he thought with something resembling sympathy for the lone girl on the team. It had never really changed things in school situations and the one who ended up suffering was the 'A' student in his experience so Johnny hoped that the bright girl wouldn't lose her enthusiasm as a result of this experience. On the otherhand she had put up with the fairly silent Drian for months now as his girlfriend, maybe her patience and drive would hold out yet.
Re: The Mountain Side: Blue Strike Force
Contrary to Nightcrawler’s plans, their supplies had been found far too soon for Kane to do as suggested beforehand. Since everybody else was eating, he reluctantly joined them hoping that didn’t mean to counteract a direct order. The quite boring food, that in his opinion didn’t even deserve that title, did keep him busy and rather distracted as he entertained himself trying to figure out what exactly they were eating anyway. How could something be so chewy, yet frustratingly dry at the same time? Then again, at least that meant they didn’t have to go out and hunt. Trained in a special facility that had had more of a boot camp than the school it had been supposed to be, the weather-controlling mutant was rather sure planning and executing a hunt wasn’t that much of a big deal. Yet at the same time, Tempest was relieved he wouldn’t have to rely on those skills that belonged to a past he was struggling to forget.
How could it be that there were such strangely blank – or rather double-filled - spots in his memory while others remained as clear as… yes, as he wished they wouldn’t be. It was like a nightmare that, although long gone and safely locked away beyond the borders of reality, kept on haunting you when a trick of light cast shadows on a wall or a child’s screaming sounded like monster screeching before you realised the truth. Still, as unnerving as it was, the memories kept on reminding him of how lucky he was to have got out this horrid place where people where nothing but tools, weapons being forged under the reign of ever-present Apocalypse. No, he had never seen him, not as far as he was aware of, but like an idol, a role-model if you will, his name and deeds and principles had been burned into their minds. A shining example for all of them, that’s what he had been and for a small, yet unaffected part of Tempest’s thoughts, he still was. As much as Kiras had been able to free him of this controlling grasp that staff had around the “students”, this one thought had been anchored too deep to get it out by extrinsic force.
"So what's the consensus on the nutritional snacks?" The girl’s voice made him look up, red eyes so unusual for human albinos leaving the ground and wandering off towards her. A strained gulp transported the last bite down the boy’s throat, a slightly appalled expression dominating his features as he muttered his reply that came out louder than intended. ”Time for a space walk?” To Kane, it seemed as if they were only one interference-riddled “ignition” away from a trip to the moon. Well, at least he wouldn’t have to worry about his powers running riot at a place without an atmosphere – or so he thought.
Guessing – and actually even hoping – there’d be some sort of conversation starting among the others, Tempest got up to fulfil his duty as offered. He could not remember ever having used his powers in such a way – not intentionally anyway – and rather wanted to make sure there was nothing to distract him around. It was actually not far away from their resting place, a slightly raised spot out of sight, mainly thanks to the trees forming a seemingly large forest to the mountains’ feet. Sitting down, Kane smirked quite self-ironically wondering how exactly he was to accomplish what he so generously had proposed.
”In fact, we don’t control the winds, we manipulate fields of energy, twist them, bend them until whatever we wish to happen becomes reality.”
Storm had said that as an introduction to their very first regular training session and what was so natural to her, Kane had had to learn first. Probably because he was supposed to know it, there hadn’t been much time needed for him to see what Ororo saw, a world of humming energy he could reach into. And this was the answer, wasn’t it?
An electric glow came to his eyes when he tapped into his power. There it was, the connection to nature itself, this invincible, untouchable force behind everything that had been, was and ever would be. Yet instead of mentally grasping one of those streams, bowing and reshaping it, Tempest closed those shining orbs and allowed his mind to travel. The atmosphere itself was his ladder and higher and higher he wandered, innate antennas reaching out to get a feel for the surrounding area. Gently in the centre, rougher to the shores and cliffs air currents were moving, the potential for rain partly due to this difference. Electricity was rising; it might as well become a heavy thunderstorm as the scarred mutant realised, but this was not what he was looking for. While sourced of electricity only formed dots, people of his kind had a greater, though mostly invisible, influence on the surrounding environment. Still, regular patterns dominated the picture that was slowly building up in his mind until…
A confused frown refused to leave the boy’s features and still remained as he returned to the others. Was he mistaken or had he simply forgotten about a significant detail? Maybe he had done something in the wrong way… or not. His thoughts kept on spinning in circles, questions that would hopefully be quickly answered when just sharing the results he had with the rest of what was supposed to be his team. ”There’re two… one close to the center, apparently flying, I guess that’s Storm… and another, weaker one southeast to where the Gold Strike Force seems to be.” He pointed into both directions, away from the mountains behind them. The first was rather to the left which was northwest, the other right ahead of them, east. As far as he could remember, they hadn’t been told where the rumoured meeting point was supposed to be, yet for Kane’s tactical mind the most favourable of routes was obvious if they were to avoid both individuals he had sensed. It was their leader’s decision though and so he wouldn’t voice his opinion until asked. Another characteristic he tended to show. Another remnant of the past.
"Everytime I find the answer to one question, a dozen new pop up. It's like somebody plays games with me and my life… I only wonder whether it’d be better if he won or lost."
Re: The Mountain Side: Blue Strike Force
aaand moving nowhere XD
There comes an age when people have to take over responsibility. It remains the question whether there is also a time when they can get rid of it again.
Oh also while I remember since Johnny's powers tie in with objects the past and future would it be possible for him to have a vision or two before they meet up with a team at a certain place or of a different team having been to a certain part of the island before?)
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