Disclaimer; Nothing doth I own, saveth the relinquished OCs.

Val opened her eyes and found herself in a dark room. Everything she saw that was not within a few feet was a total blur. Across the room were two dark star shaped things, apparently set in the wall. Near them was a brown blob, covered in silver. Along a wall was something that looked like a stand up fish tank filled something green. Floating in it was something that looked black. Near her, just a few feet away was a water cooler filled with an opaque silvery-blue liquid, punctuated only with two red eye shapes.

"What are you looking at?" Demanded a voice out of the black circular object on top of the jar. If Val could have jumped, she would have. "Yo, Blondie. I'm not talking to my invisible friend. I'm talking to you, bitch."
"I'm looking at the freaky container filled with talking water with the foul mouth."

"Touché."
"Thank you"
"That wasn't a complement."
"Whatever."
At this point, everything was becoming clearer. The star shapes were two boys, presumable twins. Their hands and feet were encased in silver gauntlets. One could plainly see the near identical star birthmarks on their right eyes, even though they were covered with eye patches. The brown blob was a boy whose mutation was clearly bovine. The aquarium was really a tank and the black thing was a girl in a gothic dress.

"I ask to be decent. What's your name?" Val asked."
"I'll answer and return the favor. Plazm. What's yours?"
"Val. Plazm?"
"Don't ask. Codename."
"Okay…"
At this point the conversation ceased. Nothing happened for a long time.

Misfit Manor

"I found something!"
Arcade burst into the misfit TV room. He seemed very excited about something. He had a computer disk in his hand. "I intercepted an email between Xamot and Tomax and Mindbender!"

"What is it?"
"It is labeled 'Sub-Project Scorpio' and look at the subject name."
"Lina."
"This doesn't make sense. Wouldn't Lance and Xi be on here, too?"
"It's a lead. Don't knock it."
"Agreed. Arcade, trace this as far as you can. Everyone else, be ready to go at a moments notice"
"Gotcha."
"On it."
"Yes ma'am-sir-ma'am."
"Don't joke. It's to early."

Tokyo

Ken Ichijoji walked into a flower shop and ordered a dozen roses sent to Yolei. Just being in a flower shop made him nervous. Plants had been reacting strangely to him for months. Ixnay on the dreams about the ocean. The spore was coming back.

Domino Town, Tokyo Suburbs

Raphael's soulself wondered far. It had taken him to the home of the pharaoh. The master had sent him to lead this farce for COBRA. The girl being Scorpio positive mattered little. It mattered less about the genderless reptile and the earthmover. They were in consequential. So was Cobra Commander's chosen 'bride.' The little minx was little more than a glorified concubine. Some slutty mutant teenager who was going to be genetically altered into a half snake. White energy wrapped around him, he ascended invisibly on to the streets of the small town. He followed the pharaoh down the street. He smirked. The Pharaoh would do. He was evil. He deserved to die as the Twelfth. He would be Cancer, the doomed, the binder.

Magneto's base

"Thank you, Baroness."
As she shut off the machine that connected to her 'superior', she muttered "Bitch."
Kasum looked over at Clarity, out of the camera angle.
"What do you think that Firefist is doing?"
"Probably being mauled by Pyro."
"That man is so sick. He's completely turned on by anything with the ability to set a fire. He's even beginning to claim Smokey the Firebear is the devil incarnate."
"The person in question us obsessive compulsive, obsessively compulsive, and compulsively obsessive."
"Aren't they mutually exclusive?
"This is Pyro we are speaking of."
"You have a point."
"But the project Cobra wants is underway. Very soon Wake will be secure in the fact that it is completely prepared for the Z project. The only problem for us is keeping the Gate under wraps."
"Right. What does Z project stand for, anyway?"
Clarity told her.

The Lower Cells

Lance woke up strapped to a gurney. As he struggled he heard a familiar and completely dreaded voice.
"How's it hanging Lancey?"
"Oh God no…"
"Oh God yes. I'm baa-aaaaaaaaack!" The Coyote leered at him from the end of his gurney. The dread canine seemed unusually happy, in a perverse, ungodly mirth. "Guess what COBRA's gonna do, huh, huh, huh?"
"Do I want to know?"
"No, but I'll tell you anyway. They're going to make sure we stay together forever! All I have to do is break your mind! We're gonna have so much fun!"
"What?" At this point the Coyote whipped out a camera and took a photo.
"Aaahhh, I'll treasure that for years. But in the serious side I have no idea what they're going to do."
"Then why did you tell me-?"
"I wanted the photo, sue me."
"If I could, I would. Listen, you walking fleabag, what the hell is going on? (A/N: as I'm typing this Illinois got into the final four! Whoohoo!) I'm strapped to a gurney and talking to you. What, did they final lock me up?"
"Now, Lance. Learn to love your insanity. But, on other matters, your recent memories are completely accurate." The Coyote was now wearing a lab coat and a pair of spectacles. "Yes you are a COBRA prisoner and etc. Let us get to the point then shall we?"
But what the point was, Lance wasn't going to find out for a while. At that point several things happened. An electric shock flew through the gurney. Simultaneously the Coyote vanished. The door to the room opened. What came through was the stuff of nightmares. Strange genetic machines and strange looking henchmen wheeling them came into the room. The devices' owner and operator, Dr. Mindbender, followed them.
"Having a pleasant chat with your delusion, Avalanche? Oh don't look so surprised. With you, one-sided conversations with yourself mean only one thing. That and the brain wave transceivers in this room. Quite useful, really. But to the point as your fantasy said. You are my experiment and I'm taking your fantasy's suggestion and running with it. You and your Coyote will be together, forever."
"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Hawaii

"Target located. Placing the Summers child under surveillance. Sub-project Aries may be complete."

CLIFFIE! Until later: Dante