Fic: Into the Statue of Liberty
author: Lucinda
rating: PG 13
disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men.
distribution: if you want it, just keep my name with it. I would
also like to know if anyone has put it somewhere, so I can look and
grin.
Summary: the Statue of Liberty. Mystique.
I felt a bit silly. They had managed to talk me into the
uniform. It was black leather, like the ones all of them are
wearing. I'd already seen theirs, in the glass cases in the shiney
hallway under the mansion. Mine still had that harsh, sharp stink
of the dye on it that stung my nose. It was pretty stiff also, and
this collar keeps jabbing into my neck. I can hear us..we all creak
when we move. How in the hell are we supposed to go in quietly when
we creak every time somebody moves?
I keep telling myself leather is durable, and has some
defensive properties. Takes a bit of the edge off impact and slows
down the likelyhood of your body getting scuffed. Then, I try the
second line of metal arguement: they simply can't hear the stuff
creak when somone moves.
Still feel a bit exposed crossing the open area in front of the
statue. Uniforms are black though, that should help us blend in a
bit to the naked eye. Won't help if they are using infrared, and
Magneto's probably got some sort of defense set up.
Slightly better once we enter the building. Until I realize we
all have to file through... not another damn metal detector.
Glancing around, I realize there isn't a way to walk around it. The
rest just file through, and I realize that Scott's visor didn't set the
thing off...hmm what kind of alloy is that thing made out of,
anyhow? Second I step under the arch of the detector, it goes off.
This piercing squeal that sets my teeth on edge. not fair - he
didn't set the damn thing off...
My claws slice through the electronics that tell it what it's
reading and what to do about it with a slight grating. I have an
almost memory of doing thing like this before, along with the
feeling that it goes easier if you get it before it sqeals... and a
vague feeling that it should be a bit bulkier. The squealing stops,
thankfully.
I glance back at everyone else, having turned my face away from
the inevitable shower of sparks. It's still smoking a litle, and
the scent of scorched plastics isn't particularly nice. Scott's
giving me this look... and for a moment I just know he's still trying
to figure out why I just destroyed that little bit of property. I
pull the outer claws back in, just for him.
hey, he's human after all. He actually grinned as he turned
around to continue our forward march. Red's just giving me this
look that says she thinks I'm some sort of unfriendly savage. Choke
a gal once, and she thinks ou have no manners. Ororo... she's
looking all thoughtful. I wish I knew what she was thinking...
We continue into the building. There are little racks of
postcards and pamphlets, glassed displays of the history of the
Statue of Liberty. The lights are dim, not as bright as they would
be in the daytime when it's open for tourists, but I can see just
fine. I can smell a bit more clearly now, less reek of smoke and
burnt plastic... scales, secrets and predatory interest..faint hint
of female. What the...
"There's somebody here." The scent is defiately a person, not
something the cleaning staff missed that got dragged in and left.
It's setting off alarms inside me, from along my spine and somewhere
near my stomach. She's trouble. I think... I must have known the
woman whose scent this is, once upon a time in the vanished Before...
"Where?" Scott's voice. He's not argueing, but I can tell that he
didn't know. He hasn't noticed the presence. Good that he's taking
me seriously. He' gone into serious Leader mode.. different that he
was in Xavier's office. I think I like this version better.
My eyes scan the room..nothing looks out of place. I don't see
anybody else. I can't hear anybody fidgeting but Jean...why hasn't
she noticed this other presence anyhow, she supposed to be a
telepath? "I don't know." I have to confess it, but I don't like not
knowing. This vague almost memory says that's a bad scent to not
know the whereabouts of. "Keep your eye open." call yourself
Cyclops, you should expect to get a little bit of torment over it.
and remember to avoid flaming sticks...
end part 1.
Gotta figure out who's here. I know she's here, I can smell
her. I go ahead of Scott... I can hear him swearing a bit behind me.
Guess he didn't like the eye comment. He'll live. More of the scent
up ahead... I'm going to check it out. See what's there. Who's
there.
Nobody in here, although the hall did curve around a bit.
Might as well go see what the rest have figured out... what the
hell!?
Somebody is walking towards Scott....and it looks like me.
Smells like scales and secrets and a smug satisfaction. Claws that
look like mine, silver shiney and sharp slide from the right hand as
she? he? approaches Scott. Suddenly, I can see the plan. Wear my
face, the face of someone who's supposed to be there. Walk right
up, and kill him. Run in the confusion. Then, I catch all the
consequences... Hell no, not again!
Part of me is still trying to figure out the again part as I
leap from the side to tackle the imposter me. I am aware of the
startled looks from the rest as we roll across the floor and end up
in a smaller room to the side. The imposter makes a smug little
kiss face at me when we both end up on our feet. Both of us produce
sharp claws....
I can hear footsteps at Scott, Jean and Ororo come this way.
They have no idea what's going on. Hell, now is no time for
friendly fire!
"Wait!" I practically bellow at them, not wanting the in the way
of this killer wearing my face and not wanting hit by them trying to
help... oddly, I'm pretty sure they would try to help. so this is
being part of a team...
There's a counterweight to keep the door into here open. I
slash at the rope hoding it, and the weight drops. The door, a
heavy metal one probably intended to hold back fires, slams shut. I
can hear Scott swearing again on the other side.
I lunge at the other, slashing with my claws. I can handle a
fight... I have practice. Lots of plactice. The other tries o
parry my blow with her own claws, and they just.. part. The ends of
the other's claws fall to the floor with the faint scent of blood.
I probably shouldn't smile a bit as the imposter shrieks in paned
outrage. High, definately a female shriek. I lunge again and end
up with my claws embedded in the wall as she dodges and runs down
the hall.
I can hear some crashing outside, the sounds of breaking glass.
No scent though... not past that door. Better go back and see what
the rest are doing.. sounds like I'm missing another fight. Gonna
follow the other, the hallway has to go somewhere, and I'm figuring
it will go back somewhere she can go after the team again.
I see a figure up ahead in the hall... hah! It's that
imposter! Let round 2 begin... and it does. Kicks, flips.. kinda
fun. I can feel everything ... muscles getting nicely warmed up,
blood singing... probably the adrenalin or something. I could do
this all day. Whoever she is, she's good. Even if she is wearing
my face. no more kiss faces at least... thank God for small favors.
Scowling at me now, at least he expression fit the face. Now, the
other doesn't smell smug but angry.
Suddenly, from half crouched and scowling, the other leaps up
into the air. I see the spinning kick taking shape... oh my god....
As the other turned, the flesh somehow... twisted and shrank
inwards. The foot that finally connected with Logan was blue, and
slightly scaled. All of her was blue and slightly scaled. She had
yellow snake eyes and short red hair. A shapeshifter.... not
encouraging. The shock stunned him as much as the impact of her
foot.
It felt much better to fight somebody that didn't have his face.
Fighting a slightly scaled, naked blue waman had a few distractions
all it's own. She was alll sleek muscle and lean curves. She
smelled angry, and determined, but he was fairly certain that evenr
if she was as slippery as a snake, she wasn't venomous. Not with
actual poison anyhow. She was fast, and fairly strong. There had
definately been a lot of martial arts training, and she was
practiced. Astonishingly flexible, and lots of flips and jumps.
aaoooggghhhh she fights dirty. Jumped over my shoulder,
twisted my arm and kicked the wind out of me. Every tendon in my arm
and shoulder are protesting. I heard and felt things crackle in
there. pain is not my friend. Now, she's apparently a fast study.
More kicks to stay out of claw reach and knock some distance between
us. She tried a chain, but I can counter that... The section of
wire fence panel is even simpler to deal with, claws out, slice down
the middle.
A few more kicks, some impressive flips. She lands on a big
box, in what looks like the proper gymnastical form... what am I
supposed to do, applaud? She's smelling smug again. I know this
means she has a plan, just can't figure what it could possibly be.
That's when she just sort of ran up the wall into the shadows above
the rafters and dissapeared.
end part 2.
Blue had got away, it was that simple. Not only had she
dissapeared into the shodows, I had no idea where everyone else had
gone. Bad form... not good to get separated. Even worse with a
shapeshifter around. I could smell Scott and Jean, and Ororo, and
somebody else in the main room. Some guy.. his scent was a
bit.. slimey. I had him pegged as adult male, sneaky, smelled a bit
slimey, like a scummed over pond in the summer. Aparently he's not
a bad fighter though, smelled like violence all over the place. No
blod though, which is always good. The whole room wa a mess.
I could hear thunder rumbling over head. The clouds had picked
up into a definate storm, and I wondered if it had been all nature's
work, or if Ororo had had something to do with it. Still didn't
tell me where they were now. Scott and Jean had gone that way...
slimey had left the floor.. more leaps? But that didn't tell him
where Ororo was.
"Logan? Is that you?" her voice.. soft, slightly accented. He
waited for the currents of air to carry her scent to him. He was
starting to get a fine appreciation of sandalwood.
"Shhh." he inhaled, tring to determine where everyone had gone
one more time. Waiting for the scent of sandalwood, and lightning....
"The other one isn't far away." the scent of scales and secrets was
here also. The shapeshifter.
" Logan, we have to regroup." She spoke again, her voice quiet.
She was making excellant sense.... find the others, no more being
split up.
He inhaled again. Scales and secrets and satisfaction. That
wasn't Ororo! How could that blue snake.... red edged his vision,
and he barely held in something like a growl. Don't let her know I
know...
"There's just one problem." He turned suddenly, burying his claws
into her stomach, just below the ribcage. " You're not part of the
group." His voice was harsh, showing little of the rage he felt.
He could see surprise and stunned shock in her expression.
There was pain as she gasped around his claws, trying to regain the
breath he had forced from her. He felt an upleasent feeling seeing
that look on what appeared to be Ororo.. made him feel horribly wrong
inside. He felt much better as her eyes changed from wide painfiled
blue to wide golden snake eyes. Sharp metallic looking claws
emerged from one upraised hand as she tried to fight her collapse,
her hair changing to red and she slipped back off his claws. She
was blue again as she hit the floor, barely bleeding, but not
moving. She was unconscious, but she still had a steady pulse.
It would have to do. She hadn't been the only fighter, and he
still didn't know where everyone else was. hmmm where to try....
how about that way?
As he walked down a hall, a scent came to him. Scott and Jean
were that way. They smelled suspicious, tired, but no blood. Good,
blood was a bad thing from your teammates... he spared a moment to
check for incriminating bloodstains on his hand. Got a feeling they
wouldn't approve of stabbing people...espescially since this time
was deliberate.
Slide the door open and step towards them. They smell wary all
of a sudden... "Hey, It's me." remember, no friendly fire. I put
my hands up in a gesture intended to look harmless, or at least
non-threatening. don't blast me... don't blast me...
"Prove it." He's cautious, with one hand at his visor, ready to
blast me if I take another step. Caution is good with a dangerous
shapeshifter somewhere... I know this is really him and Jean, but
they don't have my senses.
"You're a dick." My voice is fairly quiet. I know he's being
careful, but I resent having to prove my identity. Besides, Blue
would probably figure we get along, all running around dressed
alike.
He's not thrilled I said that. I can tell that much from his
posture. Apparently, he figures the shapeshifter probably wouldn't
be insulting him, so I must be me. eeeh, I must be me? now I have
another reason not to like shapeshifters, they mess with your
thinking. Mine's messed up enough, thanks.
"Hey." Ororo's voice, quiet and from the railed walkway overhead.
The scent of sandalwood and rain and a hint of lightning. I drink
in her scent like rain..
Now we're regrouped. I actually feel like I am part of the
group. It feels surprisingly good. Now, on to find Magneto and get
Marie back to safety.
end part 3. End this story.
author: Lucinda
rating: PG 13
disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men.
distribution: if you want it, just keep my name with it. I would
also like to know if anyone has put it somewhere, so I can look and
grin.
Summary: the Statue of Liberty. Mystique.
I felt a bit silly. They had managed to talk me into the
uniform. It was black leather, like the ones all of them are
wearing. I'd already seen theirs, in the glass cases in the shiney
hallway under the mansion. Mine still had that harsh, sharp stink
of the dye on it that stung my nose. It was pretty stiff also, and
this collar keeps jabbing into my neck. I can hear us..we all creak
when we move. How in the hell are we supposed to go in quietly when
we creak every time somebody moves?
I keep telling myself leather is durable, and has some
defensive properties. Takes a bit of the edge off impact and slows
down the likelyhood of your body getting scuffed. Then, I try the
second line of metal arguement: they simply can't hear the stuff
creak when somone moves.
Still feel a bit exposed crossing the open area in front of the
statue. Uniforms are black though, that should help us blend in a
bit to the naked eye. Won't help if they are using infrared, and
Magneto's probably got some sort of defense set up.
Slightly better once we enter the building. Until I realize we
all have to file through... not another damn metal detector.
Glancing around, I realize there isn't a way to walk around it. The
rest just file through, and I realize that Scott's visor didn't set the
thing off...hmm what kind of alloy is that thing made out of,
anyhow? Second I step under the arch of the detector, it goes off.
This piercing squeal that sets my teeth on edge. not fair - he
didn't set the damn thing off...
My claws slice through the electronics that tell it what it's
reading and what to do about it with a slight grating. I have an
almost memory of doing thing like this before, along with the
feeling that it goes easier if you get it before it sqeals... and a
vague feeling that it should be a bit bulkier. The squealing stops,
thankfully.
I glance back at everyone else, having turned my face away from
the inevitable shower of sparks. It's still smoking a litle, and
the scent of scorched plastics isn't particularly nice. Scott's
giving me this look... and for a moment I just know he's still trying
to figure out why I just destroyed that little bit of property. I
pull the outer claws back in, just for him.
hey, he's human after all. He actually grinned as he turned
around to continue our forward march. Red's just giving me this
look that says she thinks I'm some sort of unfriendly savage. Choke
a gal once, and she thinks ou have no manners. Ororo... she's
looking all thoughtful. I wish I knew what she was thinking...
We continue into the building. There are little racks of
postcards and pamphlets, glassed displays of the history of the
Statue of Liberty. The lights are dim, not as bright as they would
be in the daytime when it's open for tourists, but I can see just
fine. I can smell a bit more clearly now, less reek of smoke and
burnt plastic... scales, secrets and predatory interest..faint hint
of female. What the...
"There's somebody here." The scent is defiately a person, not
something the cleaning staff missed that got dragged in and left.
It's setting off alarms inside me, from along my spine and somewhere
near my stomach. She's trouble. I think... I must have known the
woman whose scent this is, once upon a time in the vanished Before...
"Where?" Scott's voice. He's not argueing, but I can tell that he
didn't know. He hasn't noticed the presence. Good that he's taking
me seriously. He' gone into serious Leader mode.. different that he
was in Xavier's office. I think I like this version better.
My eyes scan the room..nothing looks out of place. I don't see
anybody else. I can't hear anybody fidgeting but Jean...why hasn't
she noticed this other presence anyhow, she supposed to be a
telepath? "I don't know." I have to confess it, but I don't like not
knowing. This vague almost memory says that's a bad scent to not
know the whereabouts of. "Keep your eye open." call yourself
Cyclops, you should expect to get a little bit of torment over it.
and remember to avoid flaming sticks...
end part 1.
Gotta figure out who's here. I know she's here, I can smell
her. I go ahead of Scott... I can hear him swearing a bit behind me.
Guess he didn't like the eye comment. He'll live. More of the scent
up ahead... I'm going to check it out. See what's there. Who's
there.
Nobody in here, although the hall did curve around a bit.
Might as well go see what the rest have figured out... what the
hell!?
Somebody is walking towards Scott....and it looks like me.
Smells like scales and secrets and a smug satisfaction. Claws that
look like mine, silver shiney and sharp slide from the right hand as
she? he? approaches Scott. Suddenly, I can see the plan. Wear my
face, the face of someone who's supposed to be there. Walk right
up, and kill him. Run in the confusion. Then, I catch all the
consequences... Hell no, not again!
Part of me is still trying to figure out the again part as I
leap from the side to tackle the imposter me. I am aware of the
startled looks from the rest as we roll across the floor and end up
in a smaller room to the side. The imposter makes a smug little
kiss face at me when we both end up on our feet. Both of us produce
sharp claws....
I can hear footsteps at Scott, Jean and Ororo come this way.
They have no idea what's going on. Hell, now is no time for
friendly fire!
"Wait!" I practically bellow at them, not wanting the in the way
of this killer wearing my face and not wanting hit by them trying to
help... oddly, I'm pretty sure they would try to help. so this is
being part of a team...
There's a counterweight to keep the door into here open. I
slash at the rope hoding it, and the weight drops. The door, a
heavy metal one probably intended to hold back fires, slams shut. I
can hear Scott swearing again on the other side.
I lunge at the other, slashing with my claws. I can handle a
fight... I have practice. Lots of plactice. The other tries o
parry my blow with her own claws, and they just.. part. The ends of
the other's claws fall to the floor with the faint scent of blood.
I probably shouldn't smile a bit as the imposter shrieks in paned
outrage. High, definately a female shriek. I lunge again and end
up with my claws embedded in the wall as she dodges and runs down
the hall.
I can hear some crashing outside, the sounds of breaking glass.
No scent though... not past that door. Better go back and see what
the rest are doing.. sounds like I'm missing another fight. Gonna
follow the other, the hallway has to go somewhere, and I'm figuring
it will go back somewhere she can go after the team again.
I see a figure up ahead in the hall... hah! It's that
imposter! Let round 2 begin... and it does. Kicks, flips.. kinda
fun. I can feel everything ... muscles getting nicely warmed up,
blood singing... probably the adrenalin or something. I could do
this all day. Whoever she is, she's good. Even if she is wearing
my face. no more kiss faces at least... thank God for small favors.
Scowling at me now, at least he expression fit the face. Now, the
other doesn't smell smug but angry.
Suddenly, from half crouched and scowling, the other leaps up
into the air. I see the spinning kick taking shape... oh my god....
As the other turned, the flesh somehow... twisted and shrank
inwards. The foot that finally connected with Logan was blue, and
slightly scaled. All of her was blue and slightly scaled. She had
yellow snake eyes and short red hair. A shapeshifter.... not
encouraging. The shock stunned him as much as the impact of her
foot.
It felt much better to fight somebody that didn't have his face.
Fighting a slightly scaled, naked blue waman had a few distractions
all it's own. She was alll sleek muscle and lean curves. She
smelled angry, and determined, but he was fairly certain that evenr
if she was as slippery as a snake, she wasn't venomous. Not with
actual poison anyhow. She was fast, and fairly strong. There had
definately been a lot of martial arts training, and she was
practiced. Astonishingly flexible, and lots of flips and jumps.
aaoooggghhhh she fights dirty. Jumped over my shoulder,
twisted my arm and kicked the wind out of me. Every tendon in my arm
and shoulder are protesting. I heard and felt things crackle in
there. pain is not my friend. Now, she's apparently a fast study.
More kicks to stay out of claw reach and knock some distance between
us. She tried a chain, but I can counter that... The section of
wire fence panel is even simpler to deal with, claws out, slice down
the middle.
A few more kicks, some impressive flips. She lands on a big
box, in what looks like the proper gymnastical form... what am I
supposed to do, applaud? She's smelling smug again. I know this
means she has a plan, just can't figure what it could possibly be.
That's when she just sort of ran up the wall into the shadows above
the rafters and dissapeared.
end part 2.
Blue had got away, it was that simple. Not only had she
dissapeared into the shodows, I had no idea where everyone else had
gone. Bad form... not good to get separated. Even worse with a
shapeshifter around. I could smell Scott and Jean, and Ororo, and
somebody else in the main room. Some guy.. his scent was a
bit.. slimey. I had him pegged as adult male, sneaky, smelled a bit
slimey, like a scummed over pond in the summer. Aparently he's not
a bad fighter though, smelled like violence all over the place. No
blod though, which is always good. The whole room wa a mess.
I could hear thunder rumbling over head. The clouds had picked
up into a definate storm, and I wondered if it had been all nature's
work, or if Ororo had had something to do with it. Still didn't
tell me where they were now. Scott and Jean had gone that way...
slimey had left the floor.. more leaps? But that didn't tell him
where Ororo was.
"Logan? Is that you?" her voice.. soft, slightly accented. He
waited for the currents of air to carry her scent to him. He was
starting to get a fine appreciation of sandalwood.
"Shhh." he inhaled, tring to determine where everyone had gone
one more time. Waiting for the scent of sandalwood, and lightning....
"The other one isn't far away." the scent of scales and secrets was
here also. The shapeshifter.
" Logan, we have to regroup." She spoke again, her voice quiet.
She was making excellant sense.... find the others, no more being
split up.
He inhaled again. Scales and secrets and satisfaction. That
wasn't Ororo! How could that blue snake.... red edged his vision,
and he barely held in something like a growl. Don't let her know I
know...
"There's just one problem." He turned suddenly, burying his claws
into her stomach, just below the ribcage. " You're not part of the
group." His voice was harsh, showing little of the rage he felt.
He could see surprise and stunned shock in her expression.
There was pain as she gasped around his claws, trying to regain the
breath he had forced from her. He felt an upleasent feeling seeing
that look on what appeared to be Ororo.. made him feel horribly wrong
inside. He felt much better as her eyes changed from wide painfiled
blue to wide golden snake eyes. Sharp metallic looking claws
emerged from one upraised hand as she tried to fight her collapse,
her hair changing to red and she slipped back off his claws. She
was blue again as she hit the floor, barely bleeding, but not
moving. She was unconscious, but she still had a steady pulse.
It would have to do. She hadn't been the only fighter, and he
still didn't know where everyone else was. hmmm where to try....
how about that way?
As he walked down a hall, a scent came to him. Scott and Jean
were that way. They smelled suspicious, tired, but no blood. Good,
blood was a bad thing from your teammates... he spared a moment to
check for incriminating bloodstains on his hand. Got a feeling they
wouldn't approve of stabbing people...espescially since this time
was deliberate.
Slide the door open and step towards them. They smell wary all
of a sudden... "Hey, It's me." remember, no friendly fire. I put
my hands up in a gesture intended to look harmless, or at least
non-threatening. don't blast me... don't blast me...
"Prove it." He's cautious, with one hand at his visor, ready to
blast me if I take another step. Caution is good with a dangerous
shapeshifter somewhere... I know this is really him and Jean, but
they don't have my senses.
"You're a dick." My voice is fairly quiet. I know he's being
careful, but I resent having to prove my identity. Besides, Blue
would probably figure we get along, all running around dressed
alike.
He's not thrilled I said that. I can tell that much from his
posture. Apparently, he figures the shapeshifter probably wouldn't
be insulting him, so I must be me. eeeh, I must be me? now I have
another reason not to like shapeshifters, they mess with your
thinking. Mine's messed up enough, thanks.
"Hey." Ororo's voice, quiet and from the railed walkway overhead.
The scent of sandalwood and rain and a hint of lightning. I drink
in her scent like rain..
Now we're regrouped. I actually feel like I am part of the
group. It feels surprisingly good. Now, on to find Magneto and get
Marie back to safety.
end part 3. End this story.