Everyone was gathered in the Commissary to watch the Press Conference. Dr. Val Cooper, the President's advisor on Mutant Affairs, was supposed to speak about the underground project that had created the Prime Sentinels. Ryan and Ginny were at the front of the room, more anxious than anyone else on Avalon to hear what she had to say. Dr. Cooper was a blonde woman in her forties who carried a weight on her shoulders. She was known for her views on Mutant Rights and outright hostility towards the Sentinel program of the Nineties.
"My fellow Americans," she began. "Seven years ago, the unsanctioned Mutant Registration Agency created a terrible weapon with the sole purpose of harming Americans: the Sentinel. It was a weapon controlled by murderers who decided that certain individuals no longer had the right to live, just because they were born different. The God-given Gifts of a few innocent people made them targets of the Mutant Registration Agency and their Sentinel hound. With the help of a none-for-profit civilian agency, the Agency was shut down for good. Yet even though the prototype was destroyed, the Sentinel lived on." Dr. Cooper paused amidst the flash of cameras. It was difficult to keep her emotions in check, as she went from a painful subject to one that was even worse.
"Yesterday morning, an international strike force raided a compound owned by Bastion, advisor to the Senate Committee on Mutant Affairs. In this compound, the strike force found working models of the next generation of Sentinel: the Prime Sentinel. These are killing machines capable of disguising themselves as ordinary humans."
Ryan tuned her out. Magneto had learned the truth about the Prime Sentinels many months ago, and Ryan found it difficult to believe that the United States Government was ignorant. Their official position on the matter was denial. He snorted in a huff, then walked out of the Commissary. Now all that remained was to find out what Magneto was going to do about it.
Dominic Petros – or Avalanche, as he preferred – was one of the more influential Mutants on Avalon. Not only was he Avalon's unofficial sheriff, but he had also helped Magneto create the artificial island. When Ryan found him, Avalanche was in the Keep's Great Hall. He had a smug expression on his face that seemed plastered in place. "What do you want, kid?" Avalanche asked in a slight Greek accent.
"Justice" was the first word that came to mind. For some reason, Ryan kept it to himself. "Did you see the Press Conference?" There. He managed to speak without the anger reaching his voice. So much was beneath the surface that Ryan was amazed by his own willpower.
"Of course. Why do you think we have all these TVs?" Avalanche indicated flat-screen televisions strategically placed around the Hall. "It's about time SHIELD took on Bastion and his cyborgs."
Ryan opened his mouth, but the question cut itself short. He hardly cared what 'SHIELD' was. What he wanted to know was, "Why would they lie about Prime Sentinels?"
Avalanche questioned Ryan's sanity with a look. The reason Avalanche held no official title on Avalon was his arrogance, even though he often had the knowledge and power to back it up. "Why would the Government lie about Indians? Use your brain, kid. If the problem doesn't exist, no one has to deal with it."
The answer was the worst thing Ryan had feared, something so evil he could not put it into words. Now his fears were reality. Not only had the Government destroyed his life, but they were also denying him the possibility of ever going home. If anyone found out he was a Prime Sentinel, they would assume he was nothing but a well-designed killing machine – which was about as true as saying the same about every trained soldier around the globe. "What is the Brotherhood going to do about it?"
"The same thing we have been doing," Avalanche responded matter-of-factly. "Fight Bastion at every turn. It is our responsibility to protect people with Gifts from monsters like him."
"So people like me get left in the dust?" Ryan snapped. He stormed out of the Hall, ignoring Avalanche's shrug. The Brotherhood had already risked their necks to help Ryan. Did he really expect them to do so again?
The matter really came down to the fact that Ryan's problem was the creation of a madman, while Mutants were a result of natural evolution. If the Brotherhood was unwilling to help, then Ryan need to find another ally. A name quickly came to mind.
There was always one spot that found Ginny at sunset. It was the same place along the outer wall that Ryan had first met her. For one reason or another, he no longer noticed how attractive she was in the dimming light. Despite everything that had happened today, she was still able to just stand there.
"We need to announce ourselves to the world," Ryan said by way of greeting. "The public has to know that what Bastion is doing is worse than they can possibly imagine."
Ginny hid the bulk of her reaction, but annoyance still managed to show through. "Why?" she demanded. "Did you stop to think about this from anyone else's point of view? What do you think will happen if the public finds out? Sunny skies and red roses? There is going to be panic like you've never seen." She went on and on to describe a virtual Armageddon that would take place if Ryan revealed the truth. It was the end of the world, as she described it.
"Fine," Ryan finally said. His tone was determined, rather than defeated – Ginny's first sign of what Ryan had planned. "If that's the only alternative, I'll find another way to deal. You really aren't going to do anything about this?"
Ginny shook her head. "It no longer matters how we received our Gifts, Ryan. Actions define us; Bastion does not." She wanted Ryan to listen, but she saw that he barely heard. Ginny turned back to the sunset without any idea how to get through to the one person who should have been most like her.
For his part, Ryan was fed up. Something was wrong with the world, and no one seemed to care. It was not even a question of who knew the truth. People with power knew what was really going on. Ginny had said words to the effect that people were judged by their actions. The Government chose their course, and the time had come for judgment. If the Brotherhood chose to stand idly, then Ryan needed to act.
Washington. There were too many Government agencies for all of them to have headquarters in the city itself. Nearby towns in Virginia and Maryland were also targets. The only question was which to pick first. Ryan scratched the unshaved stubble on his chin. To think he had once looked upon those sites in awe.
Weeks had gone by since the Press Release on Bastion's underground operation. 'Zero Tolerance,' Bastion called it. No one on Avalon had the guts to do anything about the lies surrounding Operation: Zero Tolerance, so Ryan was forced to show the world what 'Zero Tolerance' really meant. That meant goodbye to Washington.
There were several groups capable of stopping a Prime Sentinel. The first danger was another Prime Sentinel, but OZT had other concerns than a rogue attack on the United States capital. Next was SHIELD, the international agency charged with stopping OZT. As a Prime Sentinel, Ryan had access to the network of orders given to all the others of his kind – even if they could not take control of him. He knew that OZT and SHIELD were currently engaged elsewhere. The only real threat to Ryan was the X-Men, a group of vigilantes dedicated to the protection of humans and Mutants from each other. And Prime Sentinels were specifically designed to counter the X-Men.
"Sentinel: Power On." With the words, the Sentinel processor switched on. His entire body changed. Skin became a shade of grey, and his hair turned auburn. Eyes were now glowing orbs that viewed the world as a computerized war machine. Plasma Generators produced a stream of energy that lifted Ryan into the air and towards Washington, D.C.
Ryan flew until he had arrived at the Washington monument and its reflection pool. There, he circled the monument once before deciding to land atop its point. He gazed out over the landscape and laughed to himself. There were so many symbols to destroy; it would be easy to break the spirit of the Americans and their façade of a government.
He stepped off the edge of the monument and glided down the side on jets of plasma. Near the base he turned and faced the monument. He lifted his hands slowly, and with a scream mixed with rage and frustration he fired blue balls of plasma through the base of the towering monument. As it started to fall Ryan quickly flew underneath it and grabbed the structure before it hit the ground. His jets fired again and he lifted the structure airborne.
Ryan grunted as he hefted the monument through the sky. His eyes zoomed in to watch it fly through the air towards its target. When it finally smashed into the dome of the capital building, Ryan silently chuckled. A quick scan of the building revealed no casualties; he wanted everyone to see what was going to happen.
Having sent the first message, Ryan now turned his attention towards the city's infrastructure; specifically, he turned his attention towards the exits of the city. He flew towards the outskirts of D.C., and bridge after bridge and road after road crumbled before his plasma blasts. No one would be leaving until he had his say.
His focus now turned towards the White House. Now that he had people's attention it would be time to do something really drastic. He flew towards Pennsylvania Avenue at blazing speeds, blasting somewhat random targets as he flew: roads, buildings, parked cars. Carnage and mayhem were his only allies.
Ryan came to a dead stop just outside his target. The opposition had arrived as he had expected. What he did not expect was the floating man in front of him and the group of people behind him. He fired a bolt of plasma at the man, but a manhole lid quickly deflected the blast.
"Why are you protecting them?!" Ryan demanded, furious beyond all reason. "They made you an outcast! They stole my life! And now the monsters in that house deny both our existence. You should be helping me." The finality and conviction of his tone even surprised Ryan, but he had gone too far to reconsider. He was in the right. "How many more lives will they destroy before someone makes them pay?" By this time, the Press had arrived on the scene. Their cameras and microphones picked up everything Ryan said. He ignored them.
Magneto slowly shook his head. When he spoke, it was with more compassion and charisma than Ryan could muster. He was the kind of man who could have convinced the Catholic Pope to support homosexuality, if not for the fear and anger his Gifts wrought. "Humanity will always fear what it does not understand. Today, you only give them more reasons to fear you. The Government has made no move against you; give them the benefit of the doubt."
"They don't deserve it!"
"Everyone deserves a chance at life, child. That is one of the ideals the Brotherhood represents." Magneto paused, and his tone became threatening. "If you persist, I will have no choice but to do everything in my power to stop you."
Ryan sneered; he was still immune to Magneto's Gifts and harbored no doubts as to the outcome of the battle. "Then you fight on the wrong side." He attacked with everything he had.
While Magneto could not use his Gifts directly on the Prime Sentinel, there were other objects in the area. He quickly formed a shield of metal to deflect Ryan's plasma blasts. Ryan continued towards him slowly, letting his cry of frustration ring through the streets of D.C. Magneto pulled the fence from the White House and quickly began wrapping it around Ryan's body. Ryan's cries of frustration quickly turned to cries of protest. Toad, who stood just behind and to the left of Magneto, chanced a nervous glance up towards his leader. Avalanche was to Magneto's right and simply smirked as the fight quickly turned towards Magneto's favor. Ginny was nowhere to be found.
Finally, Ryan collapsed to the ground and his screams could be heard no more. Magneto's gaze dropped to the ground in recognition of the loss in life. Was Ryan's thirst for vengeance his fault? He saw the mangled body, crushed by the security fence that once surrounded the White House, and he grimaced.
Gunshots caught Magneto's attention, and he raised the magnetic shield that protected him. Humans and their guns. Better to ignore them.
A group of reporters still stood filming across the street. Magneto decided someone needed to explain what had just happened. The reporters started to get nervous when he approached, so Magneto held up a hand in peace. "I have a statement," he announced, relocating the security fence to keep them from escaping. "The man who was killed today was not a terrorist, but a victim. He was a victim of Operation: Zero Tolerance and a victim of the United States Government.
"The Government elected not to divulge the truth about Prime Sentinels to the public. Perhaps they did not know themselves, or perhaps they wanted to protect the American People from the atrocities committed by Bastion. Their reasons are irrelevant." Magneto explained the origins of the Prime Sentinels to shocked cameramen and reporters who were too afraid to move or ask questions. Whenever one of them seemed to muster up the courage, a glare from Magneto stopped the reporter cold.
"Today will be the last time you hear me use the word 'Mutant.' Some people have Gifts that are beyond what ordinary people can do. After what has happened to me, I have learned that it does not matter how their Gifts were acquired. The Brotherhood will protect the lives and freedom of all the Gifted in this world, whether they were born with Gifts or their bodies raped by madmen like Bastion."
The reporters looked to be gaining their courage. Magneto's words would have to speak for themselves; Ryan had opened his eyes, and there was so much to do.