Episode Three : Part One

Episode Three : Part One

“We’re-”

“I know who you are.” he interrupted. “You belong to X don’t you?.”

The group looked at the stranger in astonishment. All seemed to be surprised that this tall, rugged man in naught save for a loincloth could have known about X. Several things about X, they themselves didn't know.

“He used to wear a jacket with a symbol just like that when he and his goons first wreaked havoc here. I take it he’s some sort of commander now.”

“‘Goons’ ? ‘Havoc?” asked Alex.

“What business do you have here?” the man asked.

“We’re here on a mission to capture an international criminal who has plans of committing his next act of terrorism from right here on this island.” Lorna stated, choosing to focus on the agenda at hand, obviously ignoring any insignificant questions that might arise because of the man’s statement.

“Criminal? You mean our invader Magneto, is no longer allied to X?”

“H-. How do you -”

“We’re here for Magneto.” Lorna interrupted Alex’s question. “Now if you’ll excuse us.” She turned and began to walk out of the clearing they had just made in battle and into the dense forest.  The agents all unquestioningly began to follow suit.

With a thwoop a spear flew pass Lorna’s ear and into a tree as the sabretooth snarled and roared.

“I’ve been aware of Magneto’s presence here for a while, and I want him off my island every bit as much as I want you off of it, child.”

The group turned around in shock yet poised again for a fight if necessary.

“So you’ll help us.” Lorna said.

“I had planned to get him off myself. And you’d have never been able to do it without me.”

“What do you mean? Who are you ,sir?” asked Ali.

“You are probably working in a time frame. There are no mutants on this side of the island, as you may already know. But I’m sure you haven’t accounted of the tar pit at least three of you would have gotten caught in as close as twenty five paces in the direction you were headed. Or the nests of the mutant fire wasps sunward from there. And there are more machines where your adversaries came from.” He paused and looked at them with a certain authority and condescension that suggested that all he was saying must have been true. This was, no doubt, his territory and a place he probably knew better than anyone. “My name is Ka-Zar.”

Lorna walked towards Ka-Zar, who towered over her by at least a foot, and whose muscles only added to her diminutization as she approached. Even with that difference they seemed equal in measuring up each other as they stared unrelentingly, with an air of contempt, one at the other.

“How did you plan on taking on Magneto?” Lorna asks.

“Approach him, then kill him.”

“Fair enough. We want to get close enough to his base undetected. Lead the way.”

Ka-Zar walked off in a direction left of where Lorna was initially headed; his pet silently behind him. The agents looked at each other puzzlingly before they realized Lorna was a close ways behind him, then they followed ; Alex behind her, then Ali, Howlett and Anole closely behind.

The group walked silently, pensively, for minutes through what seemed to be never ending forest. The day began to heat up, noticeably elevating humidity as the forest seemed to come alive with buzzing and croaking, and chirping and shuffling. Lorna finally broke the silence to ask what everyone else was thinking.

“You said X and Magneto wreaked havoc here?”

“A long time ago, before mutant existence was widely known, X and his fellow agents, Magneto and Wolverine were sent here after the discovery of the small community called Morlocks. They’d  been living here for a short number of years, and had been growing. X came with the promise that one day, very soon, mutants of all kinds and appearance would be able to live normally among humans and encouraged them to repatriate as a means of normalizing their existence among humans. Out of that came a war.”

"A war? There was a war here?"

"There have been other battles fought here. That was the first."

The trees were becoming more dense  as Ka-zar led them deeper into the forestry. The  agents were having more difficulty maneuvering  over and around plants as they tried to keep up with the strange jungle man. Anole had already taken to the trees, melting in them in such a way that only the occasional thud and shake was evidence of his presence. Cipher had resorted to lazily phasing through trees. Ka-zar moved expertly through, as if on auto, while he recounted his story

"There was a divide among the Morlocks over whether or not they should.stay here or repatriate, both among the people and the leader ship. The majority had begun to accept the idea of integration and were ready to leave. A smaller amount did not agree. Smaller they were, but powerful. And they rallied behind.Callisto, a high ranking leader in charge of security on the island."

"Callisto. I think I've heard that name." said Lorna. She was slightly out of breath trying to keep up with Kazaar. Her hair was now damp as the increased shade didn't do much for humidity.

"That's because we came across her in studies." said Ali. "She's in the Rogues database. She's listed as a null fugitive."

"What does that mean?"asked Howlett.

"So we know who didn't go through studies before they made the team." answered Lorna, snidely. "It means she is quite likely dead but the evidence isn't sufficient to conclude one hundred percent. Some mutants don't like to stay dead. She must also have been a codeX  which means she was very powerful. Those are the only null fugitives they thought it important enough to tell us about."

"Names though. Not details." said Cipher. "They aren't really expected to resurface. But with mutants, especially of some facets, you never know."

"Indeed she was powerful. When the battles began, with Magneto, X and the Wolverine enabling her opponents, Calisto was eventually forced to unleash her powers at an extent that nobody even knew she could." At that Kazaar paused and looked back at Lorna is such a way that it seemed he wasn't looking just at her, but into the past; a distant memory he wouldn't soon forget.

"What could she do?" asked Alex.

"She unleashed a kraken, so to speak. What seemed like an extra-dimensional being that resided in her. It grew to a sixth the size of the island, the expanse of its tentacles attacking everyone and everything in it's path."

"I thought you said Xavier wreaked havoc." Alex continued.

A smirk came over  Ka-zar’s countenance as he shook his head disappointedly. "It might appear otherwise to you child. But in truth none of this would have happened without X first coming here and manipulating its people."

"He didn't wreck the island." Lorna scowled.

Ka-zar remained nonchalant at her attitude, looking forward as he  continued to lead "He did. The mutant population of the island had developed its own rules, its own ways. To dissolve the system they would need an overwhelming three fourths vote from its leaders. Some leaders were easily coaxed to X's cause. They, like a majority of the common folk, still had daydreams of living among their human counterparts in their messed up world. Others were swing votes. Xavier promised them money, status.... love. Possessed by their needs and greed to have power in the human’s world and set above the rest, they sided with him."

"I know he made some of the diplomats, representatives, defenders of the reintegrated mutants. Some leaders were given assistance with their entrepreneurial aspirations. They still help fund the mutant cause even today. " stated Cipher

"It is funny. You children do not see into your leader's ways. You've even been taught so much and yet know little of everything that happened here. I'm not surprised."

"What are you saying?" asked Lorna

“Don't be too unquestioning. If Fay wasn't then maybe she wouldn't have disappeared. She would still be here.”

“Who are you talking about?” asked Cipher.

“We’re here.” said Ka-Zar.

Before they could even notice, the team was standing in front of an elaborate construct. A building built among the trees. Intricate and intimate it was with the forest, you might not have noticed from too far a distance or even the air.

A brief thud and rustle can from above.

“I think the green one just hit  my wall.”

“Who’s Fay?” Insisted Cipher.

“It’s none of your concern now, or mine. Let’s get you guys off this island.”

Been a while but I'll be resuming posting by September 29th.... Keep an eye out. :)

Episode Two : Part Two

Episode Two : Part TWO

Standing twenty feet above ground, just below the tree tops, the beady blue eyes of the monster glistened down on them, its reddish-brown scales, and razor sharp claws on its large feet serving only to magnify the intimidating features of its teeth.

The agents all braced themselves, they were poised, ready to defend themselves if - when - the situation arose. No one seemed to move, or breathe as the beast lowered its head slightly, opened its mouth and gave an eerie, long  croacking sound. “crrrrrrrkkkkkkk!!!”

Alex was the first one to break the silence, seeming to forget for that second the danger that loomed over them. “It croaks?”

“Did you expect it to roar?” answered Cipher.

All eyes remained on the beast, the team waiting for either it or Lorna to call them to action. A worse situation could not have arisen, this supposing to be a stealthy mission, may garner unwanted attention. A fight, even with just a beast, could cause a commotion that might expose their presence on the island to the very ones they sought to avoid - for now.

When one would have thought the situation couldn't get any worse, a rustling was heard from the bushes. Movement. More rustling. It got louder and the rustling continued to increase. Something or some things were coming towards them. The beast didn’t flinch;it just remained staring at them.

As the rustlings got closer and closer Lorna spotted the first man to emerge from the bushes. He wasn't very tall or built, but was no doubt fit and ready for battle. Short blonde hair and barely clothed excepting a loin cloth, and bone jewelery, the man came into the small clearing with a spear, fight on his face and nothing in his eyes. He had eyes white as though neither iris nor pupil was present.

Seconds later about twenty or thirty similar men- no, identical men - emerged, surrounding them in the clearing. All were carrying different primitive weapons - clubs, spears and stone knives - and staring intently. Lorna noticed that they seemed as unafraid or perturbed by the presence of the beast as it was of them.

She stood straight, relaxed and unintimidating - as opposed to as intimidating as one may seem to an army and a dinosaur. The rest of the team remained poised to fight regardless of Lorna’s change in body language.

Lorna looked at the first on the men to arrive, assuming he was leader somehow. “You're a mutant?” she asked.

The man continued staring at her, unchanged in his appearance, still seeming hostile.

“We're not here to harm you.... or your pet.” she continued, glancing at the beast.

“I thought this side of the island was mostly uninhabited. Didn't wanna have to gut anybody.” said Howlett. Three small glistening spikes were at the knuckles of his fist. He hadn’t as yet popped his claws.

Lorna scowled at him, glaring at him out of the side of her eyes while she still stood facing the strange multiple-man. She instructed under her breath , “There will be no gutting. If they attack Alex and Anole take the beast and Cipher, Howlett and I take the "multiple man"”.

No sooner had she finished her instruction than the “leader” with the spear uttered a loud war cry of some sort. Whether it was a language or just some form of exclamation, what he uttered was not literally understood by any on the team, but it was clear what it meant. The identical men all charged towards them weapons geared.

In a green blur Anole instinctively leaped an entire twenty feet, landing on the head of the dinosaur. It thrashed while Anole beat its head trying to take it out.

“Why did I have to get the behemoth?!” grunted Alex. His eyes and fists aglow, he fought his way through three of the men to the dinosaur and began blasting it with his plasma at the belly and legs while anole fought with its other half.

“I don’t see Anole complaining.” said Cipher.

Alex and Anole keeping the monster occupied had given Cipher, Howlett and Lorna the chance to battle with the strange men. Cipher was busy fist fighting with about five of them who were cautious of her as she quickly and expertly phased their weapons out of their hands and into the ground. She was difficult to lay a hand on but brutally laid fists and feet on them.

The men were very resilient. Even the banshee factory guards proved less troublesome as they didn’t keep getting up and coming back after being blasted by Lorna’s high tech stun ray gun. But as Lorna and Howlett fought with fist and fury, the men kept coming back. They would fall down and stagger right back to their feet, a little more beaten every time, but never staying down.

“I don't see why I can't just gut these savages.” said Howlett. Very disgruntled as he sent two of the men flying with a quick jab and kick. As soon as they were propelled another, who’d previously been knocked down, was heading back towards him. He gave this one a powerful high kick to the head and turned towards Lorna who was slightly overburdened by a group of seven.

“They keep coming out of nowhere” he said. “and they smell funny. It’s like they're not even -”

“Human.” Cipher finished his sentence. She was looking at the man Howlett just beheaded. “They’re not human! Look!”

While Howllett was busy helping Lorna from the group in which she was ensnared, Anole and Alex still beast bashing, and Cipher just having knocked down her batch for the third time - they were slowly rising again- ,they all could see what Cipher was talking about. Sparks and wires flailed from the neck of the beheaded savage; it was surprisingly still standing.

Lorna put down the headless savage with a lethal, amplified blast from her gun and started at the rest of them. “You got your wish, Howlett.”

“Finally some ‘guttage’! Though I prefer the meaty kind.” Howlett charged off and began slicing the still resilient robots. “Their insides is all metals and wires. You can take ‘em out multiply with your ‘magneta bolts’.”

“She cant you idiot.” said Alex. He was now switching his direction from the beast and charged towards the men. “The minute she uses her powers Magneto is gonna sense it. Ciph-”

“Way ahead of you.” said Cipher.

While Alex ran towards the jungle army that Cipher was handling, Cipher took off towards the dinosaur before it could start moving from the spot Alex and Anole backed it in. Alex began blasting at the men, rays of plasma passed right through Cipher before she ran right through Alex.

“Why aren’t you blasting that beast?!” yelled Howlett.

Alex hissed in response. Still blasting robot after robot, eyes aglow, not just with power but with despise for Howlett.

“You’ve a lot to learn about stealth and finesse, bub.” said Cipher. She’d arrived at the foot of the dinosaur and jumped into and began phasing up it’s belly. Soon she was emerging from the head, where Anole was, while the beast twitched fittishly. “Phasing through machines shorts and damages them. It’s much cleaner and won’t, always, cause a bang. You're free to go smash, Anole.”

One by one they took out the army of savage jungle caveman robots. Till only a few remained. A spear, out of nowhere, pinned one of the robots to a tree. The group turned around shocked, as another man, looking much similar to the robots jumped into the fight from the bushes. He was accompanied by a gigantic sabertooth tiger and began taking out the rest of the robots. When he clubbed the final one with the spear he dragged from a tree, the X-agents all stood, looking baffled at the newest savage.

He had shoulder length blond hair and wore a key necklace. Tall and strapping his godlike figure stood, nearly naked save for a loincloth, as he scrutinized them. Eyes furrowed, lips purse he was evidently displeased with them.

   
He looked at Lorna. “That’s the last of them.” he said- a language they could understand. “What are you doing here?”

   
 “This place keeps getting weirder and weirder.” expressed Alex in disbelief.

Episode Two : Part One

Episode Two : Part One

Across oceans and oceans of blue, over the Pacific, the X-craft jetted smoothly, quietly. It was a small craft that could seat no more than seven people. It looked like a minivan come aircraft, a very sleek , epic-looking, aerodynamic minivan.

The craft now had one more person than usual, five X-gents. All very quiet and pensive. Alisa Tager , code name Cipher, was piloting. The co-piloting seat was empty. Behind her, in the next row of two, was Lorna Lehnsherr (Polaris) and Alex Lehnsherr (Havok). Behind Alex, to his displeasure, was Jeremy Howlett (Just Howlett) and in the single seat centred at the back, was Victor Borkowski (mostly called Anole).

“Alisa,” a warm voice called from the crafts intercom; it was Commander X. “once within a fifty mile radius you will slow down and go into Cipher-stealth mode.”

“Roger.” Cipher answered. “Now in ‘Cipher mode’ , though I think its ridiculous that we call it that.”

Alison had the mutant ability to go invisible, intangible and completely off the radar. She could extend her power to who and what she touches, even the entire X-craft. The X-craft, of course had its own stealth settings, but nothing compared to Cipher, stealth extraordinaire.

“We don’t know what surveillance for the island is like. For now this is best. The later they discover us the better. When you land keep the machine in its built-in stealth mode and submerged.” said X.

“We’re approaching T minus 10. I’m gonna slow down now and switch to mechanical stealth as we submerge.” said Ali.

The X-craft began to slow down and all the  X-gents felt as it halted, hovering above the water some ways offshore the island. It gently landed on the water and then began to submerge itself.

“This thing doubles as a sub. I should get me one of these.” said Howlett. Nobody responded.

The craft hit ground about forty feet underwater. A few panel windows opened automatically. Enough light filtered from above to reveal several coulorful sea creatures swimming about the machine.

“Best of luck agents.” said the voice over the intercom. “And if needs be I can have the Junior team there along with The Captains in seconds.”

“Thanks X. That won’t be necessary.” said Lorna as she unbuckled her seat belt.

All the X-gents were already in their wet suits. Their dry uniforms, as well as all their equipment, were all packed in backpacks lying in a corner of the X-craft.  Ali handed out small masks that would cover the nose and mouth. The masks had small yellow tanks, about four inch longer cylinders, attached on either side at the nose portion. She also handed out goggles.

“Forges masks will last a maximum of 30 minutes underwater. He’s still developing them.” Said Ali.

“If only some people’s masks would spontaneously fail.” said Alex, obviously meaning Howlett’s.

“Good thing it would take tons more than that to take me out.” said Howlett.

Lorna gave Alex a cross look but didn’t comment. “The exit chamber fits only two at a time. Me and Alex go first, then Howlett and Anole then Ali will come after she’s secured the X-craft.” said Lorna.

With that Lorna and Alex put their mask and goggles on. They entered an airtight chamber at the back-left of the craft. Water began to slowly flood in as she hit the release button. Once the chamber was filled the exit door opened and Lorna and Alex swam out and up towards the Savage Island shore.

Within ten minutes they all were dragging their feet through the water onto the shore ; A white sandy beach with dense forestry just behind it.

When they got to the shore Howlett looked at Ali, whose head and suit was dry down to her knees. “You’re dry.” He pointed out; it was more of a question than a statement.

“These suits don’t cover your head, and even if it did, with all this hair I could fit it all in.” Ali responded, lifting a few of her locks that hung almost down to her waist. She had her hair held up in a ponytail, but that didn't do much to contain the thick locks.

“So?”

“You have no Idea how heavy three feet long dreadlocks can be when it’s wet.”

“Exaggerating.”

“I just don’t like getting it wet unnecessarily. I phased through the water.”

“You look great in a body suit.” said Howlett with a menacing smile as he begun to unzip his suit, revealing well defined chest and abs and tossing his bag pack on the sand.

Alisa turned and ignored him, taking off her bag pack.

Pulling strong arms from the sleeves of his wet suit Howlett addressed the group, “Remember our first objective is not to take on Magneto but to take out the anti-mutant weaponry.”

The entire team stopped to look at Howlett with surprised and disapproving eyes. Lorna’s face looked as cross as it could have ever been. “Can it Howlett. I’m leader. Re-briefing is my job.” She grunted. She slicked her wet, short blonde hair back as she walked inshore towards the forest still with her backpack on. “We can’t be exposing ourselves out here in the open and not just to be prudent. We’re a lot less likely to be seen in the forest. Howlett can expose himself all he wants.”

Soon they were all fully suited and among a tight fitting clearing in the forest, still near the beach. The sound of the beating waves could be heard in the distance, along with chirping birds and wind through the forest trees. Their backpacks were a little deflated and back on their backs. They stood in a circle as Lorna said –

“It'll take a while through all this so we can't really stop much once we get going. This is unfamiliar terrain.”

“Shouldn't Anole know this place?” asked Howlett. He was standing opposite Lorna and Alex with Anole and Ali on either side of him.

The whole team paused again and gave him the same scolding look as before. Anole looked particularly displeased.

“Not everyone who looks like me is a Morlock.” He said.

“You don't know much about the mutant life and story, do you?” said Ali.

“Oh. Sorry.” said Howlett, for the first time looking abashed.

Anole shook his head and Lorna continued, “Let’s move out agents.”

The team made their way through the forest towards the hilly interior of the island. They trod their way through a mesh of trees and bushes. Lorna and Alex leading ahead with a digital map on  her holographic wristwatch. Anole  was walking close behind them, his long, enhanced, hellboy-ish arms swinging at his side. Ali was behind him and Howlett was a short ways behind at the back.

As they made their way, breaking and trampling hindering plant life as they went along, Anole spoke, for the second time, to Howlett’s surprise.

“I really wouldn’t want to have to need backup on this one. Not the Junior team and especially not The Captains.” Said Anole.

“Don’t you mean ‘not The Captains and especially not the Junior team’ Anole?” said Alex, with a smirk on his face that no-one behind could see.

“Let’s just not let it come to that.” said Anole.

Ali slowed down to walk beside Howlett, wanting to relieve some of the tension that was among the group. Not particularly fond of the lad, she didn’t want him ostracized either. It was bad for the team dynamic. “So what made you leave your father's side. Is it the natural rebelliousness from being son of The Wolverine?” she asked.

Howlett focused pensively on the siblings walking ahead. “Same reason as Alex and Lorna left.” He said. “ I didn't want to die. Plus I realized pops was mad.”

Ali’s eyebrows rose in a bit of surprise and questioning.

“Back in the day The Wolverine, Magneto and X were partners - agents of the government.” Howlett continued. “They were in charge of dealing with mutant affairs. The new an exponential emergence of born-superpowered humans did not go unnoticed by the government and they needed a group to take care of the troubles that might come with it. If a mutant was too dangerous or endangered others, they had to be taken in or taken out.”

At this, Anole back-flipped and landed astride Ali and Howlett, right between the two. “Take them out?” he asked curiously

“Enhanced hearing?... I see.” said Howlett a-matter-of-factly, realizing he hadn’t been speaking loud enough for a regular person to have heard him from Anoles prior distance.  “Yes some mutants were too dangerous to live and that's where my father would come in.” He continued.

“You said they were a team. Well what happened? What changed and why do you say you're father's mad?” asked Ali.

“Well, from what I gather, an explosion happened.” He said.

Just then Lorna stopped, looking around with an alert and an alarmed expression on her face.

“Oh my God. Did you feel that?” she exclaimed.

An intense look came over Anole’s face. “I hear it, he said.”
In a short time they all could hear thuds coming towards them from a distance. It kept getting closer and closer, and what Lorna had felt became more evident as stones on the ground started to rattle and jump over the quaking earth.

 “Now I feel it.” said Alex.

Before anyone could figure out what was happening a giant T-Rex emerged from among the tall trees. It’s head almost at the top of the trees and its millions of teeth glistening in the sunlight. It peered intently at them, looking ready to strike.

Episode One : Part Two

Episode One : Part Two

Lorna was still fuming when she got to her room at the living facilities at the Triskelion. She slammed the door shut behind her and leaned against the wall, right of the doorway. “I can’t believe X did this!” she muttered to herself.

The room couldn’t have been blander if it were just four gray walls and air. It was actually four gray walls, a bed with plain, neatly spread white sheets, a wooden dresser with little more than a deodorant and a hairbrush on it, and a wall closet.

A click of the door alerted her that Alex was entering. She remained silent as he walked over and sat on the bed. “I can’t believe X thinks he can trust Howlett. What’s worse is that he put him on the team!” said Lorna.

“I know. I'm not too keen on him either. Ask me, they ought to forcibly extract the truth from that guy. I won't forget what he did to us.” Alex replied.

They both had reasons not to trust the new teammate. Things that go back to before they even joined the agency.

Lorna walked over to Alex with an expression on her face so resolute that, at least at this point, it was evident that no one could be able to change her mind. “I'm leader and I don't want him on my team. That's the end of it.” she said.

A voice came from the doorway behind her, “He's not unlike you. Don't be too quick to judge.”

No one could be able to change her mind except him of course. A young man, tall and dark-skinned, was standing at the doorway. His hair was long, black and lanky; going down to his chest and behind his shoulders, it was twice the length of Lorna’s own short cut. He was wearing a white sleeveless undershirt  and a grey mechanic’s overall with the top half unzipped and hanging behind him.

“You’re Magneto's kids. You chose to stand against him. So too was Howlett on his side with his father. So it took him a little longer to come to his senses, but he did. I trust him.” He said.

Lorna’s expression softened and she tried to get the man to see things from her perspective. “Forge, sweetheart, I don- . I just DONT trust him. It's just that... when we tried to get away from our father we tried to get him to be a part of our plan. He pretended to stand with us. Then he went back to Dad and sold us out.”

“He’s probably better for the team than any weapon I make.” said Forge. He walked over, gently put his arms around Lorna and pulled her into a tight hug. Forge and Lorna had been together since shortly after she joined the agency. He too was a part of the X-agents and has been through all the training, but he better served in studying and designing weaponry and tech for the team.

“And this is my cue. See you later sis.” said Alex.

“Do me a favour Alex.” said Lorna. “Check up on the twins.”

“Will do.” Alex replied.

As he left through the door Alex wondered about how Howlett joining the team must really be stressing Lorna. How could X do this to her and him? Though, he and his sister were always constantly bickering, disagreeing and fighting, they did care very much about each other. They’d been through a lot together and Alex never could stand to see her hurt in anyway.

He made his way down the white painted halls. The ceilings were low and the ambiance a cross between a hospital and an office. Not very homey, but this is where the agents called “home”, most of the time. The hallways took him to a double, swinging door with glass windows on each side. On the glass to the left the translucent white word “Juniors” was plastered. He went through into that hallway.

The first door he passed, to his right, was opened. It was a room similar to Lorna’s expect much better decorated and looking more like a bedroom somebody actually sleeps in. In it was a young man with bowl cut brown hair leaning against his dresser with Anole standing about an inch too close to him. The young man seemed to be trying to contain a gleeful smile while Anole hovered above him and saying something with one of the few expressions Alex has known him to make. Alex called this one the “I like” expression.

Alex scoffed and rolled his eyes as he passed them. “How old is that kid, sixteen?” he whispered, not quite to himself. Of, course, the X-agents weren’t much older. Alex, Lorna and Ali were all nineteen, Anole was twenty and Forge twenty two. Howlett would now be the youngest at seventeen.

The next door Alex encountered was to another room, this one painted pink. The TV was on and some cartoon was on it but the girls in the room weren’t watching. The two of them looked like the average thirteen year olds, playing with metal blocks that were levitating inside the room and giggling up a storm talking about God knows what.

One of the girls was a redhead and the other brunette. Fraternal twins.

“You Gals ok?” Alex asked with a light face and a charming smile.

“Yeah, Alex. We’re great.” Said the redhead while she sat on the carpet and focussed on the blocks.

“Wanna join us?” said the brunette. She was tactful and clumsily trying to climb and manoeuvre herself among the blocks.

“Nah, I’ll see you later. Got some stuff to do.” He said as he made his way pass the doors and continued along the hallway. He was glad to see the girls could still be... kids.

The next day the team were all in their conference room again, this time with Howlett present and seated. X stood at the front of the room at the head of the oval table, Lorna was still sitting in front of Alex close to the front on one side. She still appeared disgruntled at Howlett’s presence; so did Alex to a lesser extent. Howlett and Ali sat opposite them near the front while, as usual, Anole was at the far back end.

X took out what appeared to be an ordinary laser pointer device and pointed and pushed a small red button. A three dimensional hologram of the globe appeared at the center of the table. It then rotated and flattened as the hologram panned and zoomed to a pea shaped island far off the coast of the US and alone in the Pacific.

“The latest progress being made by Magneto is on an island called Savage Land. It was once populated by the Morlocks before they moved out into recognized political states. It is believed that he's constructing machines, sentinels to destroy all mutants.” said X in his usual calm tone.

Lorna seemed a little wary. “So this is just another factory bust.” she said. Apparently she wasn’t so convinced of the authenticity if the “intel”.

X continued, “Intel also cites that this is their last known base of operations.”

Lorna did a slight jump in her seat, suddenly realizing that this could mean that Magneto might actually still be present on the island. “So what are we waiting for?!” she said. Lorna, more than anyone else, wanted to bring in Magneto. In fact, it was all she worked at Agency X for.

“Don’t be so hasty Lorna. Magneto is not something you want to run into.” Ali interjected with her usual elegant comportment.

“We should know better than anyone. He's our DAD.” Alex added.

X took two steps closer to the team, peering at them sternly with his single, unpatched eye. “He’s right, Lorna.” he said. “They’re both right. You can’t take him lightly. You need to know as much as possible to prepare yourself before going in. I kept this info from you because I didn’t want to distract you from other missions while I gathered what information I could.”

It was a smart move X made keeping this from the team till now. Lorna would have lost focus on all the previous missions and it might have severely affected the team. She has always been a bit obsessed about finding, stopping and taking her father in. She would have spent even more sleepless nights researching and reviewing information, strategizing and probably even drilling Howlett, had she known about him.

“Well what we know so far is that his base is built into the ridges of the savage land hills. There are still some mutants living in the land but many don't go as far as the hills.” said X.

“Perfect cover, no one would expect Magneto to live on mutant-island.” said Ali.

“Even with Forge’s technology and Cipher’s abilities we can't take the craft too close to their HQ. So you'll have to land on the outskirts and make way by foot.” Continued X. “You have to treat this mission with the utmost delicacy. We absolutely cannot be sloppy. All directives must be followed to the T”

“Yes Commander.” said Lorna.

.............................

Hundred’s of miles away Magneto stood, in a purple suit with white pinstripes, peering through the widows of a control station. His hair was silver white and his face pale and ominous as a demon. 

Below the station in a room big enough to fit a house, were rows and rows of androids. The androids were all identical and looked remarkably human, dark haired and blue eyes. Indeed these machines would shock the world when released.

“It's almost time, Logan. When we launch the sentinel programme our work will be one step closer to complete.” He said.


........ To be continued