It's safe I ain't waiting any longer," comes Toads extremely annoying voice. Whipping around Nighttress sees Toad bounding towards her with everyone else following after him trying to stop him.
Out from behind the crates that border the courtyard, men with machine guns and rifles jump up. Closing her eyes and pursing her lips to hold back her anger, Nighttress counts to three, "One, two, three." Opening her eyes she comes face to face with Stryker. Looking around she sees that the FF are in what seems to be collars, most importantly she notices that Ben no longer looks like the Thing but is human again. Glancing at Stryker who is smirking in triumph, she then looks back behind him at her companions to see that all the mutants have been handcuffed. Still staring at her friends she says "I was wondering when you would cut the FF's powers since you have already taken care of ours." She turns to look him in the eye, "You couldn't exactly have them walking around with theirs now could you?"
Stryker laughs, "No, of course, I couldn't."
Nighttress closes her eyes and taking a deep breath lets it out, she then opens her eyes again. "What do you want Stryker?" She is hoping to maybe bargain their way out of this, it wouldn't be the first time she does so.
"Every last one of you," he says throwing his arms wide.
"I presume you don't just mean us," Nighttress says in a slightly angry voice while gesturing to herself and her companions.
"Of course not, I want all the mutants, but one can't always get what one wishes for. You though will make up for it." He says this as he slowly circles her. Nighttress stands perfectly still only letting her eyes follow him, whenever he comes into her sight.
"Why is that?"
"You are different, your mutation, though it seems like any other mutation there is a difference to it. Something about you is off. It's not human nor is it mutant. It is nothing like I've encountered in other beings. It is old, thousands of years old."
"Well, I am 175, what did you expect? Oh, and by the way, you're very good at reading people though you are wrong on some points, like about my mutation, other than that you are right, I am very different."
"Ahh, thank you I think," he shakes his head probably to clear it of the confusion of what Nighttress says and to get back on track. "I know that you are old but your mutation seems older than your age."
"Enough!" Nighttress said her voice echoing with authority, "I am old enough to be your great, great grandmother. I have run into plenty of mutants, who could say, they could have been older than me."
"I do not believe that it is because you cop..." Stryker is cut off by Nighttress asking.
"How is it that you are able to cut our powers off? Now the collars, I have seen them before, but us," she gestures to the others mutants. "How is it you are able to do that?"
"I was hoping you would ask that, bring it forward." Some of his men wheel out a machine from behind the largest stack of boxes. It looks a bit like a satellite dish.
"Ok, what does that thing do?"
"This," Stryker put his hand on it, "is the reason you cannot use your powers."
"If I remember correctly you like to play mad scientist, slash general, not a computer genius. Yes, you did use technology in your experiments but only as much as a hospital doctor would, though you're no hospital doctor."
Stryker laughs, "You are right on both accounts, I am no doctor and I am no computer genius."
"If you did not invent the machine then who did?" Nighttress asks curiously, which up to now she had not been.
"Oh, an old friend of yours did."
Nighttress glances around hoping to see something that could help with their escape because it looked like she and Stryker would stay there talking all day. A plan begins to form in her mind, moving slowly so she doesn't startle Stryker's men she begins to circle the machine studying it intently. Coming around to a keypad, she rests her fingers on it.
Suddenly Stryker says, "Do not think about shutting it down. It is voice activated, and do not even think about trying to get me to say the password."
Nighttress has walked around the machine so that it is between her and Stryker, and the lift she had noticed earlier is only a few feet away. "Oh no, I was thinking along the lines of something a little more destructive." With that Nighttress bolts to the lift. She hops on, mentally thanking whoever left the keys in the ignition and starts it up. Steering it into the machine, the lift comes to a sputtering stop, the machine still under it. The collars and handcuffs make a beeping sound and fall off.
"She is still vulnerable kill her!" Stryker cries out. Nighttress' eyes widen as one of the men heaves a rocket launcher onto his shoulder.
"Oh no!" Nighttress cries, jumping from the lift she lands in a roll just as the rocket hits. Nighttress' emotions flare like a fire when someone throws gasoline on it. Nighttress' hatred for Stryker increases 10 fold, her need to protect and keep those around her safe increases by 100, and the fear that holds half of her heart doubles so it now holds all of it.
This increase of emotions was due to Stryker holding a knife to Spring's throat. "Now you are going to back off or I am going to kill her." Every one slowly moves away from him.
Nighttress catches the eye of Quicksilver, using her, copied, telepathy she enters Quicksilver's mind and shields their link so that the Professor and Jean cannot hear them.
"You go after Springs, I will go for Stryker."
"Whatever you say, general."
"Don't call me that," Nighttress whines. Through their link, she can hear him laugh mentally. "Just wait for my count," breaking their connection she then enters Springs' mind. "Springs I need you to pull as much water towards us as you can. Focus it on yourself and Stryker, then release it on my count."
"Ok, but how is..."
"Just trust me."
"Ok," staying connected to Springs she reconnects with Quicksilver.
"You Ready, Springs?" asks Quicksilver.
"Give me a moment. Ok, I'm ready."
It felt like it had been hours since the explosion, though in reality, it had only been a few minutes. Taking a deep breath Nighttress begins counting. "One, two, three!" Suddenly out of nowhere comes a ginormous wave. Nighttress makes a note to herself to ask Springs where she got the water, mere seconds before the wave hits.
The courtyard looks like a hurricane has come through, in its center is Nighttress holding her claws against Stryker's neck. She looks ready to kill him "You," she snarls low and threatening, "will pay for the danger you put my family in," She pulls an arm back ready to make the killing blow.
A hand lands on her shoulder and a well-known Cajun voice whispered in her ear, "Don't do it Lily, you'll regret it." Slowly her claws retract, Gambit drops his hand. Immediately Nighttress' fist flies down, successfully knocking out Stryker.
Nighttress turns her attention to Quicksilver who still has Springs in his arms, from when he grabbed her. "Are you going to put her down, Quicksilver?" Nighttress snaps making Quicksilver sound like an insult. He drops Springs and jumps away from her as if she has a deadly disease. Spring makes a grunting sound when she hits the ground. She then sends Quicksilver a very angry look. "Is everyone ok?" asks Nighttress. She gets a mumbled yes.
"I believe that we should look for a way to get back home," the Professor says.
"Our communicators are probably somewhere in this place," Scott says.
"Well, then we should split up and search," Nighttress suggests. Everyone gives their own form of approval, and they split up into groups of 2 or 3. Jean and the Professor hang back waiting for everyone to leave.
After they do, Jean approaches the Professor, "Nighttress' mind as well as Quicksilver's and Springs', were shielded before the wave hit." Jean states.
"I know and it worries me." With a shake of her head, Jean follows the Professor inside. After an hour and a half, they find the X-men's communicators and call the Avengers to come to pick them up, with the x-jet.
