Panic at Home

[astonishing_xmods]

WHO: Those left behind: Viti, Melinda, Guardian Dragons, X-Force, Team 3, Martha, Emma
WHAT: Defend McCoy’s lab, aid McCoy in any way possible
WHERE: District X
WHEN: Shortly after the recovery team’s departure; early evening
WARNING(S): Violence, mentions of medical procedures

"...confirmed reports of uncontrollable fires, electrical surges, and other instances of apparent uncontrolled mutant powers coming from District X, the largest concentration of the afflicted in the city..."

"...a tragic event where a busy intersection collapsed into a massive sinkhole, swallowing dozens of cars. A known mutant was spotted near the scene; we will keep you updated as the situation unfolds..."

It was barely hours since the Blackbird had left, hours, and in came thundering the next crisis. A critically ill mutant’s power had not only hastened the illness, but raged out of control—killing innocent bystanders in the process.

Protesters had sprouted up since the virus had been found—human and mutant, sometimes even both in the same crowd, demanding that the infected be shipped out, sent away, put anywhere but here. Now, they were quickly galvanizing into riots, and worse...

Get to the District. Secure McCoy’s lab, protect the sick there. Control the damage.

And see if the reports of Sinister’s soldiers in the crowds are true.

Comments

[astonishing_xmods]

The mob began to mutter instead of roar now, some people even lowering their hands. The mutant who threw the brick didn't have a response to shout this time.

But it wasn't over.

From suspiciously silent knots of the crowd, four lit Molotov cocktails arced from quiet hands, straight at Alric and the others arrayed before the lab.

One fell early and shattered within the first rank of protesters, spreading fire and panic in an instant. People shouted, screamed, surged forward, rekindling the mob's indiscriminate fury in a moment.

[knighterrantofthedragon]

The moment he spotted the light from those arcing upward, Alric leaped backward to give himself some space. You can't really diplomacy away an incendiary weapon flying at you.

"...Tiamaris, Flandre, now!"

He trusted they knew their defensive role already; he also knew something had to be done to divert that crowd. With one molotov falling short, their reaction would be unpredictable at best. And even if they just wanted to hang around, if someone was throwing firebombs this was obviously not a good place.

"Marisa, redirect that crowd! They're not safe here!"

[valkyrianflame]

[from above Alicia has been watching this unfold through the sights of the weapon she had taken from the ground after the events with SHIELD. She immediately jumps on her coms to call to Alric]

I missed it sir. I counted 4 at least. A couple more I'd call suspicious after...

[The light sound of her rifle shoots off sending a pellet into the crowd giving off a shout and causing an unlit bottle falling to the ground]

Sir, I've identified one of them. Trying to track the others. Any ideas to disperse the crowd?

[jolie_aile]

Flandre uncoiled from her statuelike pose in an instant, eyes fixing on the closest bit of fire. Her vision unfocused, her claws flexed, tensed, and tightened into a fist—and one of the molotovs shattered into so much dust, flammable mixture inside vaporizing before it could stick onto anything.

If they were all in a row, jumping from one to the other for such small objects would be easy. But she was having trouble on focusing on more than one.

Two others remained in the air.

"I can't get them all from here!"

[stardustreverie]

This is one of the few times that Marisa wished her powers were a little more defensive in nature. She was no tank type and even though she could pull from the heat of the fire in the molotovs, at the moment, it was useless. For the moment, she had to place traiffic cop the best she could.

Keeping a close eye on the fire, Marisa stepped forward and seemed to light up after a moment of concentration. Just a light effect to make her visible..or a brighter target- who knew.

"Come on! We are only tryin' ta help and ya are gonna get hurt. If ya are just here ta gawk or stand about, Let's move on guys!"

She's trying, honest! But without getting closer, there isn't too much she could do with the crowd for the moment.

sorry for the late in, did not see this!!!!

[tiamaris]

Tiamaris dashed forward, way enough not to hurt Alric and the others as he transformed. He stood side ways and spread a wing to either side, shielding the team on one side, and anyone close enough from the crowd on the other as his head shot up towards whatever remained of the projectiles. He ROARED loud enough to shake the ground and with the roar.... came fire. He hoped to explode the things while they were still airborne, when the only one they might hit was him.

Not a self sacrificing move in the least. He was a fricken dragon. No way those small things were going to hurt him.

The one place in his life where he's confidant, and it had to be this?

[astonishing_xmods]

A few in the crowd seemed to listen, gravitating towards Marisa as she called out to them. But the sound of Alicia's pellet gun, and the commotion Tiamaris made with all of his roaring and fire only seemed to feed the panic spreading through the masses, in spite of their efficacy against the Molotovs. Some were paralyzed with fear, while others began to scramble in every direction, bumping into each other and not getting much of anywhere.

"Just get them out of here! Get them out, before they get us all killed!"

"You people are always acting like you know what's best for us, but it just keeps getting worse!"

A young mutant woman with blue hair raised up into the air, fear and anger written on her features. "It's a damn baseline conspiracy! The longer we let it go on like this, with the sick kept here among us, the easier it'll be for them to kill us all off!"

Murmurs of disagreement rose up from the edges of the crowd -- but all the people immediately around her seemed instantly convinced, and began to press steadily forward towards the Guardian Dragons, some throwing bottles and stones, one throwing bolts of pale blue light, all trying to get at the clinic. Something wasn't quite right about their eyes...

[tiamaris]

He kept his wing spread over the others from the school, but let the wing that had been over the crowd fall back. They clearly no longer wanted his protection. Clearly. He roared at the woman, trying so hard to fight the anger at her, to fight the urge to shut her up. Because he didn't trust himself to intentionally miss. Because he felt fury building. His eyes slid closer and closer to red, the color becoming brighter, more liquid. He wasn't sure how much control he had left...

[knighterrantofthedragon]

Right. Naturally, it was the distraught conspiracy theorist rioter who had mind control powers. That figured. She was going to be a serious danger not only to herself and the Guardian Dragons, but to others in the crowd: both bystanders, and those she dragged along with her.

Alric scowled quietly at the risk of even pellets fired--not to mention Tiamaris' dragon form--exacerbating the situation, but both were most likely better than leaving incendiary weapons flying about among the crowd. He sheltered only briefly in Tiamaris' protection before he leaped up again to assess the developing situation. So long as people were fleeing the area, or at least trying to, he could work with that; since hostilities had already begun, Tiamaris' dragon form would hopefully be an effective deterrent. Alicia and Flandre could stay in their point-defense style interception role, for the moment, since they'd acquitted themselves well, already.

"Marisa, keep them moving away, open a path for them to escape, if you can! Tiamaris, keep calm. And all the rest of you..."

In answer to the blue bolts of light, he held out a hand--violet arcs flashed down his arm, gathering in a small, concentrated point of light, which lanced out toward the hovering, blue-haired woman. It burst well short of her, however, with a heavy concussive thud, intended to stun her out of the air and (hopefully) break or at least weaken her control over the others. If his analysis of the situation was right.

"Stand down."

[jolie_aile]

"Want me to knock down the road?" Flandre hissed to Alric, claws lowered--for all the good it'd do in not agitating the crowd.

She smacked stones away from herself as easily as someone swatting flies, and did her best to reach the projectiles thrown at others. But there was a pressure behind her eyes from using her power this many times in short succession, even if it was for tiny, almost insignificant things.

[stardustreverie]

Okay..this was getting a little bit more then what she could do without getting too much into her powers.

"Do ya think it's time for a show though? I think most of them are not gonna do it and I can't get too close."

DPS is getting antsy and really unsure of what else to do, she can try and do what she can.

Sorry, didn't realize everyone else was waiting on me too @.x

[knighterrantofthedragon]

He held a hand out to Flandre with a slight shake of his head, although he didn't turn his eyes toward her.

"Not yet, save that. Unless you can discern a pattern to her control over them--one that won't harm anyone directly."

He suspected that was probably too abstract for her, but if she could, it sure would be convenient. They weren't quite as the exploding people's heads point, though, and he didn't intend to go there; or to put it on Flandre to do it, if they did.

"Marisa... we don't strike back, for now, but if you can intercept some of this debris..."

At least for now it didn't seem to be flammable; if she wanted to pulverize thrown blunt instruments and whatnot, and maybe make it a bit flashy, that wouldn't be so bad.

o7 No prob

[stardustreverie]

There is a grin and the light around her fades. She could do that..somewhat. She moves back, pulling out her hakkero just to get a bit of extra boost to this.

After a moment she points the glowing device at the debris and fires a smaller then usual laser, trying to deflect a bunch and maybe shock a few of the people throwing into stopping. It doesn't last too long, as she's saving her energy for a just in case bigger one.