As the name indicates...this RPG will revolve around Crossroads and New Beginnings.CrossroadsWe would like to see characters come to a 'crossroads' in their lives where important and life changing decisions have to be made. These events can be very personal...i.e. a relationship beginning, ending or changing, or they can be moral or spiritual. Whatever is decided, they should show 'growth' for your character.New BeginningsThis can be any number of items as well and most likely will relate back to the 'crossroads' in your character(s)' life or lives and/or career. They may be starting a new career as teacher or student at Xavier's School for the Gifted or may have been selected to train for the upcoming X-Men team(s). Their 'new beginning' once again may be as simple as establishing a new relationship or changes in an old one.
The X-Men and all likenesses are the property of Marvel Comics, 20th Century FOX, and ALL the creative minds therein. X-Men Crossroads is a non-profit RPG board. We here participate for the pure enjoyment and satisfaction writing in the X-Men Universe brings.Most of the Bio information is courtersy of Marvel Directory
The sight that met Cyclops' eyes as he stepped out of the lift was positively surreal. Not only was the big commando free, but he had a gun in his hand an an unmoving Logan pinned beneath him. He was just in the process of tucking the gun up snug beneath the stocky mutant's chin.
Steady, Scott told himself. If Nemesis had intended to kill, he would have done it without the risk of coming within range of Wolverine's claws. Even a downed Wolverine's claws.
The commando glanced over at the words and Scott received his second shock. Gyrich?! Cyclops was suddenly glad of the visor that hid his expression as his eyes widened in recognition. He'd known the man was military and had surmised one of the Special Forces, but he hadn't expected to see him here, now, in the middle of this.
Focus, Scott reminded himself, as the sound of lapping water drew glances at the storm bridge windows from both men. They were diving, and the big man's expression grew even grimmer. They were leaving behind his last hope of aid, however pyrrhic it might have been. Nemesis' eyes flicked back to Cyclops, though one hand was kept fanned out on Logan's chest, monitoring.
"Wait for what?" the baritone voice rumbled, anger in it like an avalanche. "To be poisoned like you did my men? For your boss to wake up and cut me to ribbons? To be used as target practice?"
Scott stood still, his hands out open and empty. "To piss off Magneto." When the green eyes narrowed at him, he continued, "We didn't attack your men any more than that fighter jock launched that missile. Any more than your man fired that gun Magneto so ostentatiously confiscated on the Olympia."
"Big dogs ... " Nemesis said slowly, some of the rage going out of his posture, though the gun didn't shift by even a millimeter. "What is it you propose?"
Re: Whale, Bridge/ Tag Gyrich"Big dogs ... " Nemesis said slowly, some of the rage going out of his posture, though the gun didn't shift by even a millimeter. "What is it you propose?"
"I propose," Logan grunted in pain and obviously very angry, "that you get offa me..."
It was impossible for him to talk without pausing; breathing was compromised by pain-wracked chest muscles and the weight of the large man sitting on his stomach. His breaths were shallow and labored with the effort; his body had healed itself of the life-threatening injuries but, as usual, the pain lingered as final healing slowed to a more normal level, and it would take a bit more time for his body to re-generate the pints of blood he'd lost while his healing factor had been suppressed.
"Get off me... *grunts*... before you find out... *grunting, gasping for air*... that my bite... is worse than my bark."
Even on his back; pinned by an enemy, with a gun shoved under his chin, and only moments recovered from near death, the Wolverine still would not yield. He didn't know how to yield, it simply wasn't in his nature. But even Logan knew that his words, right now, were simply only that. He did hope they'd work to get the heavy weight off of himself, because then he could at least get to his feet and have a better chance to defend himself, or to even execute a weak offense, if needed.
In the back of his foggy brain, Scott's words echoed as they fluttered by again. He tried to grab onto them once again and something clicked in his mind this time. Lying there, with his eyes squeezed shut; partially from the pain, but also to minimize the dizziness he was experiencing from the lack of oxygenated blood to his brain, he grunted again loudly and, with a new rage, growled out one word.....
Re: Whale, Bridge/Gyrich/Tag: Logan, ScottOOC: Moderate profanity and a bit of racism from Gyrich.
"Get off me... *grunts*... before you find out... *grunting, gasping for air*... that my bite... is worse than my bark."
Gyrich compressed his lips in a grim smile. You had to respect a guy with that much determination. It was a major headache in an opponent, but you had to respect it.
The commando considered. He had two options.
He could put a bullet in Wolverine's brain right now. As ominous -- not to mention downright creepy -- as it had been watching three battered slugs ejected from the mutant's body, he was fairly sure that would put Wolverine down and keep him there. Fairly sure. But then he would have to kill his way through the ship, starting with the young man standing there under a figurative flag of truce. It was in a way the safest course, since it involved trusting his own abilities rather than a stranger's honesty. If it had been some lying asshole Arab trying to con him with one of their shamhudnas, he wouldn't have hesitated. But the kid was American. And there was just something about him that spoke of integrity.
Alternatively, he could try negotiation. Cyclops was probably right in his surmise that Magneto was playing "let's you and him fight," and it would be nice to disoblige him. But that meant trusting a bunch of mutants he didn't know. Though ... he looked down at the man he held pinned. Wolverine did have a rep for keeping his word.
"Magneto........."
It was more a snarl than a word, and it echoed Nemesis' own feelings toward the Master of Magnetism. Repressing a growl of his own, he shifted his weight more onto his knees. It would increase the pressure on the mutant's arms, but take it off his diaphragm.
Still, he kept the gun in place. "I let you up," Nemesis said, "and I'm a dead man anyway. Worse, I'll have failed."
Re: Whale, Storm Bridge/ Tags Gyrich
As the man shifted his weight, Logan took a painfully needed deep breath and instantly relaxed a bit now that he wasn't suffocating. He was quite aware of the knees digging into his arms and his well-trained special forces brain quickly came up with a few scenarios he could play out.
But enough was enough. He was a soldier once. He understood what it meant to be one. He also understood, better than most, what a Catch-22 this sort of situation was; not only for him, but for Nemesis too.
"Yer not dead if you let me up," Logan offered with a sigh. Then he opened his eyes and looked up at the man holding a loaded muzzle to his jaw, "I'm not gonna kill ya'... unless ya' give me reason to."
The two men pinned each other with their eyes, looking for something. What that something was depended on the man; that something could be deceit... or honor. Logan wasn't sure about this particular man; his senses told him the odds were 49/51 odds... he was taking the chance that the odds favored honor, but still his senses rarely failed him.
"You shot me... you prick," Logan reminded the man, "so if ya' get off me now, yer a point ahead... or three." The last was mentioned with a spark in his eye; the kind that clearly said 'i owe you one' but also held a certain amount of respect for the guy's skill and ingenuity. He decided to follow his nose on this one....
...he really didn't have much choice.
"Seriously, let me up an' we can talk... I give ya' my word."
He could've just popped his claws and took his chances with the bullet in the brain thing, he'd survived that before... but it didn't make for nice play with six foot-long steel blades glinting of the lights in the middle of peace talks, but he was ready.
Whale, Storm Bridge/Gyrich/Tags: Logan, Scott"Seriously, let me up an' we can talk... I give ya' my word."
One corner of Gyrich's mouth flicked up at the 'or three' remark and he studied the man more closely. He was a pretty good judge of people and in his experience, it was the ones who couldn't laugh at themselves who were the bad ones. Wolverine met his eyes with the assurance of a man who knew his own value and didn't need to weigh it on the scales of others.
With a little nod of acknowledgment, the commando shifted the gun's muzzle off to one side, gently thumbing down the hammer as he did so. Rocking back on his heels, he unfolded himself and stood, stepping away without taking his eyes from Wolverine.
Just barely audible was a soft sound as Cyclops began breathing again.
Re: Whale: Bridge, Command/Logan/ Tag Gyrich, Scott
He kept his eyes on Nemesis even as he felt the warm steel of the recently fired weapon shift away; the distinct sound of the hammer being lowered made him want to let out a breath, but he wasn't going to be that obvious.
The man nodded and his weight shifted, then lifted from him and he watched Nemesis step away cautiously. Once he'd stopped; choosing his safe distance, Logan exhaled and rolled over onto one elbow with a groan.
He took a moment, holding that position, to evaluate his condition. The dizziness was barely evident any longer and although a bit achey he could move. He thought about his last offer then slowly moved to get on his feet. Using the console, he used it to steady himself as he stood then said, "I lied..." Turning slowly, he leaned against the console's shelf, bracing himself with both hands to either side of him and looked at Gyrich. "We're not going to talk.... he is," he mentioned with a nod toward Cyclops, "and we're gonna listen."
With that, he looked to Scott. The kid had some interesting thoughts going and he wanted to hear them. And Logan knew that "the two big dogs" were too closely aligned in temperment and skill that for either of them to try to assume control of the situation would only be taken as competitive "macho pride", as Nemesis had put it earlier.
So... it was up to Scott to lay it out for them to consider, to come to an agreement or not. It was going to be up to him to get these two fighting men on the same side, solidly. This would be another step in his evaluation of the young Cyclops as a future team leader. As he waited for the kid to begin, he looked down at himself and the fresh blood... his blood, lots of it too.
He kept his head down, but raised his eyes to Nemesis as he brought up one hand to scrape most of it off and wiped it on his jeans; the smell of it tickled at the "animal's" nose, awakening his primal blood lust, but he fought to keep it at bay. He was holding control, unknown to him though was that his eyes were black; pupils completely dilated, and his lip would twitch now and again as if he wanted to sneer. He was on the edge of ferality, but holding the berserker at bay and as Scott began to talk it gave him something else to focus his thoughts on.
Re: Whale: Bridge, Command/Scott/ Tag: Logan, Gyrich"We're not going to talk.... he is," he mentioned with a nod toward Cyclops, "and we're gonna listen."
It was a good thing Scott had resumed breathing, because it left some air in his lungs when he promptly stopped again. Somehow, he managed not to gulp as both men's eyes fell directly on him, Wolverine's with brows drawn slightly down, Gyrich with a single crimson eyebrow arched. Between them, there was more hard combat experience in this room than he had years on this planet.
But, he reminded himself, this wasn't just about combat. It was about hearts and minds ... and a Dream.
"Who frightened Andreas into losing control of his powers?" Cyclops asked. "Who created an apparent terrorist incident with scores of civilians hurt and scores more in jeopardy scant hours from a US Navy battle group ... then came to the X-Men with word of a pair of terrified, trapped mutants in need of rescue?
"When hostilities started to come off the boil, who threw a dozen rogue weapons of mass destruction into the mix?
Re: Whale: Bridge, Command/Gyrich/ Tag: Logan, Scott
The questions were almost rhetorical, exposing a cunning plan with elegant clarity. Gyrich's answer was little more than a rumble deep in his chest. "Magneto."
Flicking on the safety, he tucked the 9mm into his belt at the small of his back as he continued, "And I see your point, but it doesn't make for a solution."
Cyclops turned his head slightly, seeming to be looking at him, though the visor made it impossible to tell. "All we want is this ship so we can get home. If there are any weapons of mass destruction still aboard, you're welcome to them. We'll do everything we can to help you find and either offload or destroy them."
The commando turned the suggestion over in his head. It certainly sounded reasonable. He hated to give up the ship, but he wasn't in much of a position to bargain.
Still, it wasn't the kid's call. He glanced in Wolverine's direction.
Re: Whale, Bridge/Gyrich/Tag: Logan, Scott
"Bah, this is no good," Nightcrawler flustered, pounding the console lightly with both fists in frustration. "If that crazy man can shoot Wolverine when he is all tied up what good are any of the ship's defenses?"
He flipped some controls on the tutorial station he'd inherited from Sco -- Cyclops. Best not to even THINK out of code names, no?. His face lit up, however, when he saw the next tutorial area.
"Aha! Auxilories! Maybe I can figure out how we can escape, Ja? Like those rescue pods we ..."
He broke off when he saw all his fussing and noise was disrupting the others.
"Sorry," he said in a small voice, then leaned forward in concentration, licking his lip briefly.
Re: Whale, Storm Bridge/ Tags GyrichThe commando turned the suggestion over in his head. It certainly sounded reasonable. He hated to give up the ship, but he wasn't in much of a position to bargain.
Still, it wasn't the kid's call. He glanced in Wolverine's direction.
Logan turned his dark and serious expression on Nemesis. Well, he had to give the man credit again, he listened but he didn't make the mistake of thinking the Wolverine had turned command over to the younger, less experienced man.
The corner of his mouth quirked upward and he stood up, away from the supporting console. Straightening his back, he took a few steps toward the larger man. Placing his hands on his hips, he looked up at the towering Nemesis, drawing himself up to his full height of five feet three inches.
"He's right... about everythin'," Wolverine informed him. "That's Magneto's M.O. alright," glancing away momentarily, as his thoughts turned briefly to what he'd really like to do to the man if he could ever get face to face with him again, a repressed growl sounded in his throat coming out as more like a heavy purr.
"He's also tellin' the truth about the nukes. We didn't know they were on board, we didn't even know they existed. We only came here to assist what we were told were two helpless an' terrified mutants who were under attack," Wolverine verified the information that Cyclops had offered then cocked his head to the side and continued. "We're not terrorists... an' we got nothin' against humans. We did help evac most o' the people aboard that ship before you an' yer guys showed up to take us out. We don't take sides between humans an' mutants. We take sides between right an' wrong," Wolverine explained, hoping to make their stance in this conflict clear, "The best any of us can hope for is that the intel we're given is correct an' that what we fight for is the true objective an' not someone else's agenda simply for personal gain."
Logan paused a moment, looking over at Scott, then he looked back to Nemesis, meeting his gaze squarely as he added, "This time we got handed bogus info... both sides... you... and us. We ain't the enemy.... are you?"
Wolverine waited, giving the man a moment or two to consider everything he'd been told. Now he waited; staring up at the man, who clearly stood head-and-shoulders over him, to see if the truth would be seen and accepted... or ignored.
~I have internal and external cameras. Sonar is clear, though still just impact warning at this point, but I'll have full sensor and cloak figured out shortly. Shouldn't be hard to find the WMD and get them to Nemesis and his people for disposal.~Evo reported, not acting any different for Gyrich's presence, thanks to his curent form not being an apparent threat, or so he assumed.
Re: Whale: Control/Crow/ Tag Evo, Kurt, Chamber
Crow shut off her mental connection as soon as the Whale had stopped its dive, feeling slightly woozy for a moment. As useful as it was, playing passive sonar really wasn’t her thing. Although she had never done anything quite to this extent, the aftereffects were annoyingly familiar, and she waited for the sensation to pass; eyes closed, breathing shallow, and movements stilled.
A minute later, her eyes opened to look at the ever-oblivious Kurt. The teen wasn’t sure whether to be amused or annoyed, and instead turned back to her station wordlessly. The nausea had passed, at least, even if her head was still pounding. It seemed unlikely that she would finish it now, but the more she learned the better. If she was lucky, she wouldn’t be interrupted. If she wasn’t lucky, she’d probably have more important things to think about than the TransPad. On that note… Crow’s ears flickered back up into the furry points she had assumed earlier, swiveling back and forth with the noise. If she wasn’t lucky, she wouldn’t be taken by surprise.
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(O.o)
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copy the bunny to your siggy to help him achieve world domination.
Whale: Storm Bridge/Tags: Logan, ScottWe ain't the enemy.... are you?"
"I'm just a soldier," Nemesis replied, looking down at Wolverine and then flicking his glance across to Cyclops before returning it to the shorter mutant before him. "I swore an oath to defend my country against all enemies." The timbre of his voice shifted slightly as he spoke, remembering that day. He'd sworn it and he'd meant it with every fiber of his being. He still did. "If you're her enemy, then you're mine."
He looked across at Scott again. "But, here and now, I do not think you are."
Re: Whale: Bridge, Command/Gyrich/ Tag: Logan, Scott
"You swore an oath to defend yer country? So did we," Logan informed the towering man standing in front of him. "We're not her enemy... so I guess we're not yers either. I just told you that we're not the enemy. So... you gonna work with us or continue to get in the way?" Wolverine asked pointedly.
He glanced from Nemesis to Cyclops, straightening his head a bit at the expression on Scott's face. What was that? Recognition? Did Scott know this man?
Logan recalled that Summers had military training and his eyes flicked back up to Gyrich before settling on Scott again. If there was something he needed to be aware of his stare would tell Scott that Wolverine was aware of something going on in his head, silently asking "what!"
Whale: Storm Bridge/Scott/ Tag: Logan, Gyrich, Evo
"So... you gonna work with us or continue to get in the way?" Wolverine asked pointedly.
"That depends," Gyrich replied, "on where you intend to go."
Scott caught Logan's questioning look and wracked his brain for a way to communicate both what he knew and what he suspected about the big commando to Wolverine. The stocky mutant wasn't in the link, but he did have a radio ... as did others who were in the link.
~Evo,~ he sent silently. ~Tell Logan over the radio that I've met Nemesis before.~ He paused a moment. ~Yesterday, in Salem Center. He was wearing civvies and said his name was Gyrich. I don't think he's recognized me, and I'd rather he didn't. Tell Logan also that I'm pretty sure he's Delta Force.~
OOC: If Logan doesn't have a radio headset, scratch all that and I'll figure out something else.
Re: Whale, Storm Bridge/ Tags Gyrich
~Scott, duufh!~ Kurt mentated, accidentally broadcasting ~codewords!~codewords!~ as he pounded his thigh with a closed fist.
~Cyclops, I've learned how to use the rescue pods, we can leave if we need to but they only have a 20 click range. There are some other craft on board with a longer reach, but nothing that would get all the way to New York. I started the defense tutorial and there's some mention here of an internal security systems~
Wanda, her gaze doubtful, gazed about. Nothing surprised her anymore. What with what she's been through.
The island didn't seem all that interesting to her, her thoughts were now focused on getting out and finding Magneto again. She should have stayed with him when he left but she didn't.
She stepped out of the helicoptor and continued her gazing. Nothing interesting here.
Now where can she find a way out of this place. She saw Gambit and decided to follow him. Perhaps, he knew of a way to get off this island.
Karina:
Karina was silent, her eyes wide as she took in the island. Nice! But where could she go? She so wanted to return home. Her heart was plainly missing her family.
OOC: Sorry for not posting in a while. Been busy. Edited by: Mana4X2 at: 3/9/06 1:52 am
Re: Gambit/Thera Island/Same Day
LaTrina, with her mother hovering close had followed the others from the helicoptor. The teen's attention was still focused on the one she had healed sometime ago. Her eyes wide with worry as the doctors wheeled him in to the hospital. They stopped her before entering the ICU (if there's one there). LaTrina glanced at her mother, that same worried look on her face.
"Don't worry LaTrina, I'm sure he's all right." Mrs. Adams reassured her daughter. "We should find those others we came with, just in case."
LaTrina nodded and followed her mother, in search.
OOC: Don't know if they found them or not.
Edited by: Mana4X2 at: 3/9/06 1:53 am
Re: Whale: Storm Bridge/Tags: Logan, Scott
~Nightcrawler, get on the radio to Logan. Tell him 'Looks like Nemesis is probably Delta Force. Cyclops me him in town yesterday, and he said his name was Gyrich. I would, but Fearless Leader forgets I have no voice like this.~ Then, in an aside to Cyclops, he added, "And if you want, i can get us out of here undetected. I've got full sensor access, both inside and out, and I have a screen showing all satellite orbits, so i can even plot us a course to keep us out of sight of all of them.~
Re: Gambit/Thera Island/Same DayTags: Latrina, her Mom, Scarlet Witch, & Karina
Aaah, the wonderful feeling of pain killers doing their job, the Cajun thought, still leaning back in the hospital cot, red-on-black eyes having already completely taken in his surroundings. He’d spotted several of the others already, some of them being checked over close by, others, like Latrina and her mother, following the man she had healed, concern and worry all over the young healer’s face.
Remy sighed, he had a responsibility to watch out for all of those with him still, no matter how much he just wanted to lay back and flirt with the gorgeous nurses that came to talk to him.
Pushing himself up off the bed, Gambit made his way over to the two family members, “Yo’ two be needin’ anyone t’ be lookin’ yo’ o’er?” he asked, once again spotting Wanda, “An’ where do yo’ be t’inkin’ yo’ be goin’?” he inquired, eyes narrowing a little at the girl
Scarlet Witch was definitely not someone he trusted in the slightest.
Background: Many, many years ago, Charles Francis Xavier established Xavier's School for the Gifted. Also, seeing other Mutants misusing and abusing their powers, he created the first generation of the X-Men.This original team was trained and lead by an old friend of his...Logan, aka Wolverine. Logan's co-leader was a young woman and student named Ororo Munroe, aka Storm. Once the team was trained and fielded on active missions, they took on the additional responsibility of teaching and helping new Mutants deal with their powers.On one horrible night, the X-Men were fielded to stop a particularly powerful Mutant and his 'gang'. The 'intelligence' received on this Mutant and his cohorts was sketchy and actually turned out to be a set-up to entrap the X-Men and take them captive. In the ensuing melee', 'things' happened and a number of the team were killed outright or severely injured.After making sure his remaining team-mates were going to be okay, Logan left. Xavier has not, to current time, explained his absence or even whether or not he survived.Current Time/Game Time: Almost seven years later, as Human/Mutant incidents are on the rise, Xavier once again sees a need for a Mutant 'police force'. He sees this new X-Men team as a force for good and a way to help peacefully integrate the rapidly emerging Mutant society with the established Human society. To this end, he has contacted Logan and asked him to 'come home' and train his 'new' team.
Logan has reluctantly agreed.Can shadows from their past be put aside for the good of the new X-Men? How will the surviving members of the original team react and what will they do as 'truths' are learned about that disastrous night?Note: We want the new X-Men to include younger versions of the old familiar characters such as Scott, Jean, Beast etc...as well as many of the OCC’s and other Canon characters that are available.Please ask the Staff BEFORE stating or establishing that your character was one of the old, now disbanded, original X-Men.
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