Return of Israfel

February 12, 2016:

Another day in X-Red Headquarters brings visitors

X-Red HQ - New York

Characters

NPCs: None.

Mentions:

Plot:

Mood Music: None.


Fade In…

Brins control of her power is sorely stretched and Ryan's asked her to try and take things easy. Easier said than done for the Brunette.

Today though, she's decided physical training is order and can be found in the X-Red training room. A practice blade, a wooden waster, in hand, moving through forms slowly and surely.

Dressed in yoga pants and a singlet top with the X-Red logo, the dark eyed mutants hair is pulled up in a high pony tail.


This is Brinley taking it easy? Wanda has very little in the form of fighting skills but she should probably learn. And the first step of learning is to watch someone else…and thankfully they are really slow and easy to follow. Wanda sits on the floor in a lotus position as she studies Brinley. She's dressed in scarlet sweapants and a scarlet tank top - there is a color theme happening here. Wanda does want to talk to Brinley - see how she is and maybe talk about what is bothering her - but for now she is staying quiet and biting her lip.


"…Ave verum corpus, natum…"

A voice can be heard, just faintly, drawing closer to the X-Red training room. Sung by a tenor the words are long and drawn out, sung over a complicated melody and almost in time to the sound of footsteps accompanying it. "…de Maria, virgine…" The singer lets the note hang, and walks the last several yards to the training room in silence. The pause does not last long, as it is broken by the words:

"Honey, I'm ho - ommmme!"


Brins forms are slow because slow builds precision and perfection … she'll speed them up as the routine progresses. She knows Wanda is watching though, and whilst Brins far from a master, she's no slouch.

The singing that floats into the room has stopping and she looks to Wanda "Seems that one of our older members is returning. In the training room, Lucijan. I wasn't expecting to see you, so soon."


Wanda looks over in the direction of the singing. "Another new member? Oh…a new old member? This place is like a circling door sometimes." She still has her Transian accent. It doesn't look like it is leaving. Turning back to Brinley she asks. "These practice moves you do. What happens when the bad person does not stand where you are practicing to hit?"


Lucijan Dragovic — or Israfel — steps into the training room, dressed in his thick-collared woollen coat and carrying a slender cane. Luminescent, blue-white eyes blink sightlessly as he takes a few steps further into the room, and stops — both hands resting upon his cane.

He smiles.

"Dobro dan (good day)," he remarks in Croatian, as his lips shift in expression from a smile to a smirk. "It is good to be hearing your voice again, Ms. Myers. Training, always training." The man's East-European accent shows easily in his enunciation. Turning in the direction of the other voice, he adds: "A new voice. I am not of knowing this one." He hums, idly, after talking and starts walking straight toward Wanda. Extending a hand in her direction he remarks: "Lucijan Dragovic — pleased for making your acquaintance."


Wanda, Lucijan and Brin are in the X-Red training room. Brins dressed in yoga pants and singlet with the X-Red logo and is holding a 'waster', a wooden practice sword in her right hand, as Lucijan enters the room.

"Brin, Lucijan. What brings you by?" Brin remarks mildly. Ms Myers is for business "Always training, Lucijan, yes. This is Wanda, code name: Scarlet Witch. I was nearly finished, and now I am."

Wanda's question gets another smile "Ah, well first, I practice the forms, getting the right, then I add speed and then I practice against someone else… Once your body remembers the moves, it all becomes rather natural."


Peter lands on the balcony then walks in, looking around for… Well, anyone really. Anyone not being in sight, he sends his mind out searching for someone. Someone he manages to find but the mind's not familiar. Nor that one. Nope, not that one eith… Wait. That one, he's encountered before. In that direction. He heads for the mind he recognizes, wandering through some corridors before getting to the door it's behind. Opening it, he looks in to see who she's with then gives Brinley a nod.


"Hello, Lucijan" Wanda greets, offering her own hand and then realising that she will have to do more than that. She takes his hand now and shakes it, nodding along to Brin's introduction - not that he would see any of that. "Maximoff" she adds her surname. "From Transia. Not too far away from…hmmm…Croatia I think. I am recent recruit to X-Red and I also tend to…wander." That explains why most of the time she will be very hard to find.

And then there's another one. Wanda notices Peter through the door and offers him a wave. If they have got this far then they probably should be here. Though she has no idea who she is. Wanda really must look at the files more.

"I should practice fighting more" Wanda nods to Brinley. "I am not very good at punching. Except with my brother. I can punch him hard…though I think he lets me."


"A witch of scarlet," Lucijan muses, smiling as he releases Wanda's hand. "Scarlet Witch — this, I like. This I might have chosen (or something of similar), but the monks I think would have taken to it less kindly… So I am Israfel instead." Half-smirking, he tugs at his coat-collar and turns around. Lightly humming, he looks directly at Brinley and then at the new arrival, Peter, in turn. With each hummed note there is a faint shimmer of astral energy around him.

"Brin, then," he replies to his old friend. "Where is everyone else? There are too many strange souls, too few familiar ones. Dobro dan," he tells Peter. "I am Lucijan. Welcome."


"Hello Peter, I wasn't expecting you. How are things at the Institute." Brin's followed some of Peters progress there, but she's kept busy enough here. "I hear you've been looking for a mentor? How goes that search?"

It's very faint, but Peter will detect the slight trace of emotion directed at him - genuine curiosity - Brins starting projecting, without knowing it, a side effect of her latest troubles.

"How long have you been back, Lucijan? And the others are all out on contract, except Bobby. He's taking some time for R&R. I expect he'll be away for a few weeks."

Chuckling at Wanda's punching comment, Brin nods "You're always welcome to train with me." Wanda will know how much time Brin spends training - her mind and body … powers and business skills too.


Peter Stanchek nods to Wanda in response to her wave, looking from her to Lucijan when he speaks up. "Hey." Brin just mentioned his name so he doesn't need to. "It's okay." he tells Brinley. "A mentor? No, not yet. I've been kinda busy with stuff and not around a lot to meet too many people. I was kinda hoping Audrey would be here visiting. I'm guessing no since I can't hear her. Could you get her a message for me?"


Wanda nods in understanding to Lucijan. "Yes, I have a very strange soul. I cannot deny that." Then her brow furrows as she looks over at Brinley. "Bobby has gone? Again? Which of his fifty girlfriends is he R and Ring with this time" she teases before looking back to Lucijan. "What is an 'Israfel'?" Peter seems to be here for a serious reason so Wanda let's him talk to Brinley. She isn't even sure who Aubrey is.


There is a flash of discomfort from Lucijan as he recalls his excursion back to Croatia recently. He masks it relatively well, and maintains the smile upon his face despite whatever he feels inside. "Only just having arrived," he tells Myers with a nod. "I expect the jet-lag to be hitting me soon…" He cants his head to the side a fraction, listening to Peter quietly, before shifting his attention back to Wanda.

"Israfel, in the Heavenly hosts is being the angel of song," he tells her politely. Another flash of pain emanates from him, and he suppresses a grimace. "A… friend made a gift of this name, so I keep it." A moment later he attempts a smirk. "You have met Robert? Ah."


"I understand that problem, Peter." Brin smiles back "Audrey? She hasn't been a member of the team for a while, but I see her from time to time. I can get her a message." She does still do work with X-Red and they have ways of contacting her. "What is it?"

"Bobby's mutation is accelerating, Wanda." Brin grimaces, looking worried "and a doctor he's been seeing told him he's heading for an 'event'. So he's taken himself away for a while, so he doesn't … hurt anyone."

"Bobby's one of the team, Lucijan… " the brunette mutant looks over to him and frowns "Have you got somewhere to stay? If not, we've spare rooms. The only other visitor we have is Gabriel. Not counting that Wanda and I live here."


Peter gives his head a small shake, absently reaching up to rub a temple as he glances over at Lucijan. "I know." he says to Brin. "But she said you knew how to get in touch with her. "Ask her to tell Captain America probably and I want to talk to him?" He doesn't know who this Bobby is but seems curious about whatever a mutation event is.


"Bobby is not well?" That hits Wanda hard - with both what is happening and that she did not know. "Where did he go? Is he alone? He should not be alone in a time like this." She gets to her feet and looks like she is about to leave immediately to help him out before her shoulders sag. "He would have told me if he wanted me to help" she decides sadly before Lucijan needs to leave and she offers him a weak wave, her mind elsewhere.


Lucijan nods, humming softly to himself, and heads out to find one of the spare rooms. Watching him go, Brin calls after "I'll check in on you in a few hours."

Giving Peter a quizzicle look, Brin nods slowly. "Sure, I can do that." She knows Audrey is tied up in all sorts of 'secret' things and doesn't ask any more.

Sensing Peters curiousity and seeing Wanda's distress, the brunette takes a deep breath "Let's get something to drink …." she leads the way from the training to the kitchen before continuing her story. "Bobby's at The Nest" not that will mean much to either of them. "I know how to get in touch with him and he's not alone. It's not that he's not well, Wanda." speaking quietly, she continues to explain "As mutants, our mutations don't stop, they 'evolve'." she won't say 'get worse' "It normally means that our powers get stronger. You remember, Nick, don't you Wanda? His mutation makes him of a were-wolf, slowly but it's happening. For Bobby, his ice powers are … changing. He's expecting something to catlyse the change, and he's worried that he'll freeze everything around and everyone around him …" It's happened to him before.


Mutations can evolve? That's something Harada never mentioned. Though Peter's stronger now than he was ten years ago so maybe they have been after all. He just assumed he was learning to use them better. How strong will he be when he's Harada's age? Or in another ten years. "I can activate someone's power." he tells Brinley. "Maybe I can keep them from getting worse too. I've never tried anything like that before and don't know if it's possible but I could try."


Wanda nods about Nick but she hasn't seen him in a while. Is he a full-on wolf now? She finds a stool to sit on beside the kitchen bench. "I am glad he is not alone" she notes softly before listening to Peter's offer to help. "I could probably do something" she offers. "I am not sure what but I could…maybe…change things? So he doesn't have to suffer anymore." Her brief time with the Vishanti boost opened up new paths for how to use her powers - except she isn't sure she has the strength to go with all these new ideas.


X-Men seem to evolve, at any rate. Maybe it's to do with the X-Gene. Brin doesn't know. What she does know is that her teachers expected her powers to change as she aged.

"You can ask him, both of you. I'll pass a message on." It's the best she can do. Bobby hadn't been happy when he broke the news the other day and packed to go.

"You can activate powers, Peter? I'm not sure I want to know how you worked that out… " In her experience most power discovery … is interesting to say the least.

Taking sodas and water from the fridge, she passes them over. "I can make tea or coffee too, if you like." beat "Wanda, how did you go with that fabric piece the other day? Any chance to look at it yet?"


"It could be dangerous." Peter warns. "It's dangerous to activate them and very painful. I don't know what trying to stop them would be like." Assuming it's even possible. He shrugs at Brin's comment. "I just… did. I can feel when someone is a psiot. A mutant, I mean. I don't really know how I do it. I haven't often."


Wanda takes the soda and has a sip before answering Brinley…though she doesn't actually look at the other woman. "It was hard to figure out" she replies. "I think some signals are being mixed up. I know you don't like talking about that day on the training mission but are there some records I could look at?" Wanda offers Peter a sweet smile. "It can be very hard when you don't know what you can do" she nods. "I created voices…or did they create me?"


"Anything to do with manipulating is dangerous." Brin agrees, settling those dark eyes of hers on Peter. "Well I know about knowing how your powers work. At least mine seem to be behaving today." Little does she realise that she's 'leaking' emotion, albeit not a lot at the moment. "We still know little about you, Peter. Are you ready to share something with us yet?" She knows what it's like to not know who you can trust, so you won't push. That's just not … Brin-like.

Wanda's question has her expression clouding … and she looks to the woman, green and gold motes starting to form around her … a wave of emotional distress being directed to Wanda.

Taking a deep breath, Brin stills for a moment, the motes slowly dying away "Uh, perhaps my powers aren't quite in control." Reaching for her tablet, she pulls up the mission report. In are photos' of The Paragons. Brin and Nick, aged eighteen and seventeen, and the others …. including Nico Yar who might look familiar to Wanda. Under his photo, the letters - K.I.A. "Why, Wanda?"


Peter opens the soda and takes a drink. Wanda's comment is more than a little weird but his best friend was a schizophrenic so he's not just used to it but used to hearing the voices as well. "You created them." he assures Wanda before looking at Brinley. "What do you want to know?" He watches the computer monitor curiously, glancing at the two women.


Wanda looks at the offered photos with some interest before offering a smile to her friend. "I just needed to figure something out" she offers Brin…though it is not much of an offering at all. "Will you trust me, Brinley? I need to look into some things just to make sure of what I thought I saw. Scrying is not a perfect art." A nod towards Peter. "I thought I did but sometimes you can't be sure, you know?"


"Do you think so, Peter?" Brin knows little about Wanda's voices but she's the woman do some amazing things. "Oh, really, anything you want to tell us. Where you're from, what brings here … I only know that you're guest at The Institute and looking for a mentor." beat "I grew up in Metropolis and ended up at The Institute when I when I was about nine until I graduated." she offers a little of herself in return.

Wanda's question gets a slow nod "I do… and I know. But why did you want to see this information?" she's going to worry at it, she just is. Letting out a deep breath "I'm sorry, Wanda … yes, I trust you. I wouldn't have asked you if I didn't."


Peter Stanchek drops his gaze. "I know." he says softly, sadness almost overwhelming him and easily detectable by Brinley though it barely shows on his face. "I was recruited by a very powerful psiot who intends to take control of the world to save it from itself." With the psiots in charge of course. "When I found out he killed my best friend, I tried to kill him but failed. Now he's hunting me." It's all said very matter of factly as he locks down what he's feeling.


"He doesn't sound like a very nice man" Wanda frowns to Peter. "Does he know where you are? I think by now that the people who are after me know exactly where I am. I wonder why they haven't done anything?" She ponders that for a long moment before peering at Brinley, her brow furrowing. "You wouldn't have asked me if you didn't trust me?" English is such a hard language. "I will find out something definite for you soon" she promises. And since she isn't sure who she can talk to about this, it looks like Wanda may be trying something solo! What could possibly go wrong?


Brin winces as Peter's emotions hit her. She hadn't meant to cause that to happen. "I'm so sorry, Peter." Brins head is starting to ache, again. No ones fault, it's just overusing her powers … or them over using her.

"If you're being hunted, you're likely with the right group." The X-Men do tend to take care of their own, even if they aren't X-Men exactly. "Please let us know, if we can be of assistance. Although, being public like we are is probably a risk you don't want to take."

"They likely know better than to mess with us." Brin murmurs at Wanda. Sighing at the next question "I trust you, Wanda." stating it as simply as she can. "Perhaps, if you're looking into The Incident, you can work with Tabby. I've asked her to follow up and see if there was any video of the exercise at The Institute." How did Brin know that Wanda might try this on her own?


"No, he's not nice at all." Peter agrees. "I haven't been attacked in New York yet." Which isn't an answer but the only one he can give about whether his location is known. He gives Brinley a curious look, wondering at the childlike tone of the other woman. "No, I'm careful not to draw attention to myself."


"I will talk to Tabby then" Wanda replies. "She seems okay I suppose" she shrugs, pushing the tablet back towards Brinley. "There seem to be plenty of people who don't know better to mess with us" she adds before looking at her friend. Wanda's mind ticks over. She could tell her something but she isn't sure about it and what she would say would break Brinley's heart. No…she has to be sure. "What's a psiot?" she asks Peter instead.


Brin shakes her head is amused resignation at Wanda. Tabby's part of the team. Albeit it one of the younger ones and bit 'fluffy', but she's competent and a big help to the brunette.

"You do that, Wanda." Another sigh and rueful nod "Yes, there are some that don't know better, but notice since we stopped the Sentinels in Metropolis, it's died a bit?" Thank heavens for small mercies.

Her phone chirps at that moment and she glances at the screen. "Got to take this. Peter, I'll get that message to Audrey for you. Please excuse me, you two."

With a last look at Wanda, she answers the phone as she leaves. "Hello Mr Markeson, this is Brinley. How may I help you?"


"Mutants." Peter answers. "At least, that's what Harada called them. Though maybe only the ones whose powers were psionic in nature, such as controlling electricity, empathy, flight… I don't think I ever saw anyone with a physical mutation." In fact he didn't know they existed till he got here. He nods as Brinley leaves to take the call but then says "I should get back to the Institute. I just wanted to get Audrey that message."

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