The Beat Street Club
Posted on Tue Aug 6th, 2024 @ 7:05pm by Connor Bruin & Meilin Jiang & Iris Walker & Bliss Hawkins & Levi Rousseau & Hayden Davis & Ethan Hale & Aurora Summers & Hank McCoy & Kennedy Kelly & Maeve MacKenna & Bianca Mathew & Max Herrera & Theodore (Theo) Winters & Kayleigh Marshall
8,333 words; about a 42 minute read
Mission:
Episode 5: Days of Fortune Past
Location: East Harlem, New York City
Timeline: October 12, 1990
The Beat Street Club was located in a section of East Harlem that was plagued with poverty and crime. Littered with trash and makeshift shelters, the dingy streets felt guarded and hostile to any outsiders daring to enter the neighborhood. It was a stark contrast to the extravagant and well maintained mansion where the students of Xavier’s were welcomed and accepted.
The neighborhood provided a bit of perspective for the students, that not everyone was saved and dropped into the lap of luxury and opportunity. Some mutants were left to fend for themselves and make their own way. Which is exactly what the Fallen Angels were, inner city mutant teenagers who had found a way to use their mutant abilities to survive.
The bus full of students parked in an empty lot near the Beat Street Club. Half a dozen sets of eyes watched them from the alleys, rooftops, and windows. It would have been concerning if they hadn’t been greeted by a teenager with a large smile on his face.
“Hey, Y’all,” the young African-American man greeted them. He was lean with an athletic build with his hair cut into a sharp and stylish fade. He had expressive eyes and a rather confident smile. “I’m Ty, Ms. Jean told me to wait for you here and get y’all set up and working. She had something urgent to attend to but she’ll be here as soon as possible.”
Ty looked over the group as they exited the bus, he seemed to be looking for a particular person. His eyes found Connor and he stepped forward to greet him.
“Connor, right?” Ty offered him his hand to shake “Ms. Jean said I should reach out to you about getting everyone situated.”
"I AM THE LEADER," Connor confirmed. "WE ARE HERE TO HELP." He looked a little apprehensive about the environment. It was a long way from Muir Island where he grew up. So many people in such a small island made him anxious.
“Don’t mind the eyes on you, they’re friends,” Ty said with a chuckle “It’s how we keep our streets safe. No one will bother you here, this is Fallen Angels turf and you’re guests of ours.”
Ty took a step back and addressed the group as a whole. “There are three stations for you to pick from. Whichever one suits you best you’re welcome to join. All of them need help.”
Connor did a headcount as everyone got off the bus and began to mill about. "EVERYBODY LISTEN TO TY," he instructed. "HE IS IN CHARGE."
“First group is with me.” Ty placed a hand on his chest as he spoke. “We’ll be demoing the inside of the Beat Street Club. Knocking down walls and hauling out trash. It’s the most physical work.”
"I WANT THAT ONE," Connor said.
“Next group is with Meilin.” Ty gestured to a shade covered set of folding tables with propane stoves and cutting boards set up on it. “This group is doing meal prep for the neighborhood. If you like kitchen work it’s the best place for you.”
A lean figured Asian woman gave the group a demure smile and waved with her gloved hand. Her eyes sparkled with a knowing look.
“Last group is with my ray of sunshine.” Ty smiled at a small blonde who wiggled her fingers in greeting. “Tandy is organizing and distributing donations to the community. It’s a good way to meet the families who live here.”
“Head on over to where you would like to help and we’ll all get started,” Ty said with a smile.
OOC: Drop your character below with what work you would like them to help with.
Demolition
Ty brought the group inside to the bar known as The Beat Street Club. Encased in dark, weathered wood paneling that has seen better days, its once glossy finish now dulled with age and wear. The room smelled of old cigarette smoke and mildew. The bar itself was a heavy slab of dark-stained wood, scarred and scratched from years of use. Brass foot rails ran along its base, tarnished and polished unevenly from countless patrons' shoes. Behind the bar, was smudged and cracked mirror paneling that made the bar that much sadder. The seating consists of high-backed vinyl stools, their cushions cracked and patched with duct tape, arranged around scratched wooden tables adorned with faded beer coasters and mismatched ashtrays. The carpet, a shaggy orange-brown, was worn thin in patches, revealing the bare concrete floor beneath.
“All of it goes.” Ty gestured to the dank bar room. “There is a dumpster out back that everything gets tossed into. We’re stripping this down to nothing so we can start over.”
"DO YOU HAVE A SLEDGEHAMMER?" Connor asked. "I ALWAYS WANTED TO SWING A SLEDGEHAMMER."
Hank chuckled at Connor’s enthusiasm. “I find it hard to believe that nobody ever handed you a sledgehammer before,” he commented.
“Sledgehammers are great,” agreed Max, as eager to bust things as Connor was. “So are axes!”
“Oh, what have I gotten myself into?” laughed Hank.
Bliss stood back out of the way. She was in worn jeans and a flannel shirt. Her hair was tied off underneath a purple do-rag. She kept a pair of cheap sunglasses perched on her nose. "Ty, you want to take everything down to the walls? Or do you want the inner walls gone too? We can leave the support structure behind if that's what you want." She slid a sturdy pair of work gloves onto her hands and began to tighten them. "Boys love smashing. Me? I just want everything in the dumpster."
"I guess one man's treasure is another man's trash." Ty said with a chuckle as he removed some sun faded posters of buxom blondes promoting Budweiser. He wrinkled it up and added it to the quickly growing trash pile. "Inner walls come down, just the outside structure stays. This place is going to be completely different by the time we're done with it."
"If y'all want tools, there are some in the back office." Ty gestured to an old water damaged pine door "Just make sure you put them back when we're done. Stuff has a tendency to go missing around here, especially stuff that can be sold."
Ty stood up on a step stool and began to take down the amber glass lamps that dotted the ceiling "When Telford was killed, I had a hell of a time holding on to his stuff. Word got out and they swooped in like vultures to take what they could."
Bliss stood next to Ty, studying the step stool with a foot. "Are you looking to salvage any of this stuff, boss man? Those lamps might be reusable you might be able to get something for them but I don't know if it's worth the effort. Your call."
“You sure do ask a lot of questions.” Ty chuckled as he continued to work “If you want to recycle the lamps be my guest but I’m just going to throw them in the dumpster with everything else.”
Bliss shrugged before blowing a bubble with her gum. "Asking questions is how you learn. You know what they say about people who assume." She took one of the glass lamps and casually tossed it across the room into the junk file with a loud clatter. "Junk everything. Got it."
“I can help with the heavy lifting and clear up.” Aurora smiled before looking towards Connor. “If that’s alright with you, Connor?”
"DO NOT HURT YOURSELF," Connor said. "YOU ARE PREGNANT WITH SCOTT'S BABY, SO I HAVE TO TELL YOU TO BE CAREFUL."
"Yeah boss man, we could use Miss firecracker here." She patted Aurora on the shoulder lightly. "I'd rather her have help me clean up in here than cutting up veggies."
“Thanks, Bliss.” Aurora smiled warmly. “It’ll save some time at least.”
Bliss reached into her pocket and pulled out a pack of gum to offer to Aurora.
"Chocolate Mint Bubble Yum?"
“Oh, no but thank you.” Aurora smiled warmly.
“This is fun!” declared Max, swinging a sledgehammer at a wall. “Just watch out for the studs; it is not fun to hit them.”
Hank chuckled at the young man’s enthusiasm as he stayed a safe distance and began pulling at one of the holes he had left, successfully and satisfyingly pulling great hunks of paneling as well as drywall- or was it sheet rock?- off the walls. The nails would have to be pulled, too, but they would deal with that later. “You say that like you know from experience,” he commented.
“I do,” confirmed Max, swinging the sledgehammer again. “Helped my dad take down an old outbuilding last summer. My shoulder hurt for days.”
"MAKE SURE TO LOWER YOUR DOMINANT HAND AS YOU SWING OR YOU MAY INJURE YOURSELF," Connor said.
Meal Preparation
"Ni hao," Meilin said to the crowd of students who'd gathered around. "Wash your hands, please, before touching anything."
The setup consisted of several sturdy folding tables arranged in a semi-circle. On these tables, various cooking utensils, pots, and pans were neatly organized for easy access. Portable stove tops with propane tanks were strategically placed along the tables, positioned to create an efficient workflow that allowed the students to move seamlessly between them as they tended to different dishes. Above the tables, a canopy provided shelter from the elements, its canvas stretched taut and secured with metal poles anchored into the ground. Sunlight filtered through the fabric, casting dappled shadows across the cooking space.
"Today we are making street tacos," Meilin said. "Very easy to make and package. We have tortillas, we have meat, we have sauce, and we have vegetables to dice. Anybody who cannot use a knife can take a burner."
“I’m good at chopping!” offered Iris cheerfully, automatically going to one of the large cutting boards. “As long as the knife is sharp. I hate chopping with dull knives.”
Meilin canted her head and smirked through a grimace. "Chopping with dull knives is perhaps more dangerous than a hot burner."
“Is it really?” asked Iris in a way that indicated she didn’t doubt it at all. “You learn something new every day. Why is that, though?” she added, beginning to chop carrots.
Arching an eyebrow at the question, Meilin wet her lips before she explained. "Using an electric burner is more of a matter of timing than anything else. It is unlikely to cause damage. A dull blade, however, is essentially a broken tool, which means it does not function as designed. The likelihood of an accident is increased significantly." She picked up the spatula she was using to prepare the seasoning and touched it to her lips. "Mmm. Yes, but needs more lemon zest." She gestured toward a cutting board. "If I could have a fresh one zested, that would be wonderful."
Hayden joined the cooking crew and sidled up to a burner. "Hi, I'm Hayden," she said, introducing herself to their host. She gave a quick wave to Iris and smiled. "Are we cooking the meat and diced veggies together or separately?" she asked.
Meilin turned to Hayden with a thin smile, realizing that she may need to make introductions and give instructions multiple times. "Ni hao, Hayden. Welcome. Everything is being cooked separately to maintain their distinct flavors and textures. The vegetables will be lightly sautéed to keep some of their crispness, while the meat will be seasoned and cooked thoroughly. Choose a burner and stir lightly."
Turning her attention to the entire group, Meilin said, "Remember, cooking is not just about following instructions, but an expression of yourself through preparation. Despite the uniformity of the process, each street taco will be as different as you all are."
"I've never thought about that before," said Hayden. "At least in regards to cooking. But it makes sense. You must be a chef, or at least culinary artist." She smiled as she turned the heat down to lightly sauté the veggies.
"No... I just believe that something worth doing is worth doing well." Meilin flushed at the compliment and stirred the meet on her burner as an excuse to turn away. Despite her upright posture and confident bearing, there was no hiding the callouses and scars on her hands and wrists. "Alright, let's pick up the pace. We want everything to be finished as close together as can be."
Without a word, Iris started chopping faster, realized she was getting uneven pieces that way and went back to her previous speed.
Ethan, still wasn't feeling himself. There was something off. He was a bit heavier than before and his appearance more feral. He had noticed he got angrier too easily and wasn't sure what to do about that.
For now, he was just trying to keep his mind off all the and how he would deal with it. So, he had decided to help with the cooking crew.
"I can do the veggies," he said as he moved to the appropriate burner.
Donations
A small golden haired blonde directed the students to a makeshift donation center. Introduced to them as Tandy, she seemed to be overly enthusiastic about the work that needed to be done. “We have clothes, shoes and camping gear to hand out. Along with some books and games that came from your school.” Tandy gestured to several old tables arranged in rows. Each table was labeled with its intended category such as men's, women's, children's, and accessories. Making it easy for donors and recipients alike to locate specific items. Alongside the tables, large cardboard boxes and plastic bins were filled with donations that hadn’t been sorted.
“We need to sort everything by type and size and then we can start handing things out.” Tandy said before opening one to the boxes to begin sorting.
B shrugged and followed suit, choosing a box at random. “There is a lot here,” she commented idly. “People can be very generous sometimes.”
"I know, right?" Tandy agreed with that same smile still on her face. "I don't know how Ms. Jean does it but she makes a few phone calls and then people are willing to donate. She has to be the most persuasive person I've ever met."
"Some of it is actually kind of cute," Kennedy chimed in after she had silently followed Tandy to the donations center. She was not good at calculated demolition and she was trash in the kitchen, Kennedy at least liked clothes. So it seemed the best place for her to pitch in. Kennedy held up a pale blue dress to her body as she examined it. "This one still has tags on it."
"It helps to have some new things, not just hand-me-downs. When you rarely get anything for yourself sometimes new things are really important." Tandy became a bit more somber but her smile remained.
"Did you grow up here? In Harlem?" Kennedy asked Tandy.
"No." Tandy shook her head "But me and Ty have been together for a little while now. So I've seen my fair share of this neighborhood. Some people here are in bad shape, they're addicts and it makes them real sick. Others just can't seem to get their feet under them. Living in poverty makes people see you as beneath them, then add being a mutant to that and you're not better than a rat. Helping the people who live here, it can change their lives."
Kayleigh had decided to make herself useful in donations, anything she could do to help others was fine by her.
“Hey!” B suddenly exclaimed in surprise. “Someone has good taste!” And she held up a pair of army green cargo pants identical to the ones she was currently wearing.
The autumn sun was suddenly blotted out by what was presumed to be clouds. But then the sound of jet engines became too loud to ignore and everyone stopped their work to look up at the sky. A squadron of Sentinels descended upon Beat Street’s surrounding city blocks. Their metallic forms gleamed in the sunlight as their massive frames landed in the streets, causing all the nearby windows to shake from the impact.
Eight Sentinels advanced on Beat Street. Four of the Sentinels were boxy in shape and moved with a touch of slowness. While the remaining four were sleek and aerodynamic, they moved with much more ease compared to the others. Regardless of their design the formidable machines towered amongst the project housing of the Harlem neighborhood.
“Multiple mutant targets acquired, beginning protocol.”
They were relentless as they advanced on Beat Street with calculated, synchronized movements. Widespread panic filled the streets as the people who lived here began to flee in fear for their lives.
Bliss had just finished rolling a four foot wide junk ball into the outside dumpster when she noticed the commotion. She started shrugging of her flannel shirt to leave her in a halter top.
"Aurora! Tell the team we've got incoming! Big robots! Bad attitudes! It's clobberin' time!"
“Robots!?” Aurora nodded. Rather than run around she put her telepathy to use letting everyone know at the same time. “Alright everyone knows! We need to make a plan.”
Bliss nodded towards Connor across the room.
"That's Connor's job. He's the tactical leader in a situation like this."
"WE NEED TO SPLIT UP," Connor said. "JUNIOR STUDENTS NEED TO HELP GET OTHERS TO SAFETY..." He paused for a minute to figure out where that might be. "SUBWAY STATION. 241st STREET. EVERYONE MEET THERE UNTIL PROFESSOR X CAN RALLY US."
Looking to the team, he said, "X-MEN, DRAW THE SENTINELS AWAY FROM OCCUPIED BUILDINGS IF POSSIBLE. OUR OBJECTIVE IS TO TOPPLE THEM IN THE STREETS. INTERSECTIONS WILL BE IDEAL. THEN DISMANTLE THEM."
It wasn't much of a plan, but right now Connor wasn't sure what he was working with. They had to do something. Scott had told him that making the wrong call was better than no call at all. Now was the time to put that to the test.
~Aurora, please relay those instructions to everyone as best you can~ Connor pressed his fingers against his eyes as he continued to process the situation.
~Doing it now, Connor~ Aurora focused everything on telepathically broadcasting what Connor had said to the others, there wasn’t time for running around shouting the news.
Connor darted out from behind cover, ripped a manhole cover out of the middle of the street, and spun in a circle before chucking it. The manhole cover spun like a discus before catching a Sentinel in the articulated knee joint. It faltered in its next step and paused. Turning its head, the red eyes glowed as they settled onto Connor.
"Hostile mutant identified. Engaging target lock."
The Sentinel's mechanical palm extended at Connor. A red laser lit up in the center, growing hotter by the second.
Bliss had repositioned her purple bandana to cover her face from the eyes down. No need to make it easy for these government types to figure out who she is easily.
She had taken to the scrap in the dumpster and compressed glass and metal and mirrored bits of debris into two hundred pound boxing gloves. She leapt into the sky to engage the most forward robot. She saw the weapon in its hand starting to glow from heat.
Escapade drove one of her makeshift boxing gloves into the mechanism, twisting the punch to cause as much damage as possible for the opening round. She needed to be seen as a threat by the robots to lure the contraptions into chasing her and not hurting her friends.
"Come on!"
The blast from the Sentinel's hand went wide and incinerated a phone booth at Connor's 3 o'clock position. "THANK YOU!"
Kennedy swore under her breath as she watched the sentinels descend and immediately begin their paths of destruction. They moved with reckless abandon towards whatever target they had identified. Collateral damage meant nothing to them as they honed in on whatever mutant had been identified. Today was a terrible day to not bring any type of bow or arrows with her, she had been foolish enough to think that today was just going to be a mundane trip into the city.
Looking around for something to turn into charged projectiles, Kennedy found a box of donated shoes. They had enough weight to them to actually be thrown but she lacked the strength to throw them far. Examining the sneakers for a moment, Kennedy tied a pairs laces together and created a makeshift bolas. Swinging it above her head, she charged the sneakers with enough kinetic energy that they sparkled in dim sunlight. Letting them fly, the sneakers wrapped around the knee of one of the older, slower sentinels. They exploded upon impact and the sentinel lost its balance while black smoke began to pour from the damaged joint.
"Hostile mutant identified. Engaging target lock."
The limping Sentinel turned its attention towards Kennedy, who in return continued to pelt it with charged shoe after shoe. "A little help here!" she called out to the rest of the team.
Aurora put her newly found confidence in flight to work, focusing on telekinetically picking up some of the debris from the start of the demolition, she used it to forcefully hurl projectiles at one of the Sentinels hoping to do some damage. They were huge and small projectiles were only going to do so much, but if she could pierce one then she could hopefully rip it open to expose sensitive parts.
Instead of throwing objects at the Sentinels, Hank ran towards them as fast as he could- which, thanks to his mutation, was pretty fast. Reaching one, he swung around it and climbed to its shoulders in a matter of seconds. Stealing himself against the expected shock, he plunged his hand into the back of the sentinel’s neck and pulled at the first wires he found.
The Sentinel came crashing to the street between a row of cars that failed to clear out in time. While Hank had leaped away to safety, Connor ran up to it. "WHAT IS THE FASTEST WAY TO DISABLE ITS WEAPON SYSTEM?"
“Weapons control system,” Hank answered. “The panel on the left arm. Blast it, stick magnets to it, open it up and rip out some wires, whatever.”
That was easier than the head. Connor nodded. The manhole cover lodged in the Sentinel's knee came free with a few jerks. Leaping to the Sentinel's arm, Connor raised the heavy metal disc over his head and slammed it into the metal plate again and again. When it finally began to warp, Connor shoved the manhole cover under the plate and used it as a pry wedge. Pulling with all his might, Connor let out a savage grunt until the cover finally snapped loose. The plate was dismantled, revealing the inner workings of the mechanical linkage that controlled the Sentinel's movements. Encased in the middle was a junction box with circuitry jutting all around it. Connor gave it a firm smash with the manhole cover before tossing it aside.
With one of their number deactivated, the other seven Sentinels took stock of the situation and updated their protocols.
"Mutant identified: Beast. Affiliation: X-Men. Designation: Terminate."
“Gladly!” growled Beast, charging towards the sentinel.
But with Bliss knocking a second Sentinel to the ground with her Reduce-Reuse-Recycle golden gloves, the remaining Sentinels now had more than one primary target. The more distant one turned away, drawn by a closer reading on its scanners.
Five remained, with four of them featuring swifter, more agile movements and heavier plating. They would not go down as quickly as the Mark 1 units.
Hayden got the telepathic communication and heard the instructions from Connor. She had been ushering the students younger than herself in direction of the nearest subway entrance that would get them to the correct station. It was then that she heard one of the X-Men call out for help. Hayden found herself having to make a split second decision. She took a deep breath and decided that demerits would be worth it.
She got the last of the younger students out of the way and scanned the area. New York City was littered with fire hydrants that held water at static pressure. She concentrated on the one closest to them and caused the water pressure to build up enough to pop the top. "Let's see how it likes this!" Hayden focused the water that came shooting out into something akin to a pressure washer stream and aimed at the knee of the limping Sentinel. It may not cut anything, but hopefully would at least help to knock it off balance some more.
The concentrated pressure of the burst hydrant was redirected into the articulating governor of the Sentinel's leg. No longer able to be controlled, the limb locked in its current position.
"Locomotion disabled. Returning to base."
But not before it pressed its open palm toward Hayden and charged its primary weapon."Oh crap," said Hayden. "Anybody with electrical powers or something?!" she yelled. "Maybe short circuit it?" She popped the top off another hydrant and brought the streams together. She created a wall of water in front of her and surrounded it with mist. It would in no way defend against a Sentinel blast. But maybe it'd give her a chance to get out of the way. In the seconds it took to build it all, she ran in a zig pattern around the wall and through the mist. Her plan was to come up behind the Sentinel. Hopefully.
"Corrosion detected. Mother-mother-motherboard cor-cor-cor-corrupted. Initiating self-des-des-des-des-struct."
"Get down and get small!"
Tiny hands grabbed Hayden by the shoulders from behind, flipped her sideways, and tossed her to the ground. The world turned upside down for a second until Hayden found herself face first on the pavement. It was Meilin. Somehow she had flipped Hayden around and put her in a fetal position. Meilin then went spread eagle, covering Hayden as best she could.
The Sentinel exploded, sending flaming shrapnel in all directions. Sounds from the explosion rocked the entire neighborhood, though Meilin's gasp was plain to hear in Hayden's ear.
"Ow!" Meilin began to wince in great pain. "Well... that was less than graceful."
Moaning as she got back to her feet, red stains began to show on Meilin's white blouse. Several chunks of metal were sticking out of her body. As she limped into the burning rubble and twisted metal that remained of the Sentinel, she stretched her hand out into the base of the fire. Her first hand was joined by the second until the flames burned away her sleeves, revealing well-toned arms that held scars. Soon, the flames were snuffed out, their licking tongues reduced to red and orange wisps that encircled Meilin's limbs and were absorbed into her midsection.
When she stood up again, Meilin looked strong and unflinching. Her eyes were aglow with an azure light. "Gather the others, Hayden. We must get them to the subway."
Hayden couldn't believe what had just happened work once she had just seen. There would be time to talk about all of that stuff later. Right now, it was time for action. "I owe you one," she called out to Meilin. Hayden began searching the debris for survivors or anyone hiding that hadn't made it out yet.
"You may yet repay it before the day is through." Meilin joined her in the search.
Iris, who had been leading a group of younger teens to safety, crawled out from under the car she’d dove under when Meilin had ordered Hayden to get down. A small boy crawled out after her. “Go after the others,” she told him and he took off in the direction they had disappeared. “Is that everyone?” she asked Hayden and Meilin.
"I think so," Meilin said. "The Fallen Angels know how to scatter. Let's those we've gathered to safety."
"You ready, baby girl?" Ty said with a smile as he extended a hand to Tandy.
"With you, always." Tandy's sunshine smile continued as she took his accepted hand and the pair disappeared into supernatural darkness.
Seconds later the duo appeared on the rooftop of a brownstone that brought them to the same height as the sleek and quick sentinel's head. Without hesitation a barrage of glowing daggers was released from Tandy's hand. They cut and marred the sentinel's head which brought its attention to their current position.
But before the sentinel could scan them, Ty took her by the hand and they were gone. Displaced and removed in the same inky darkness as before. This pattern of attack and teleportation was repeated over and over again.
The pair moved with such unified skill that it became almost impossible to keep track of them. The lingering gloom from Ty's last movement was the only indicator of where they had once been. Tandy's daggers of light shredded the sentinel's armor until its vulnerable wires were exposed. The final spray of daggers made impact with circuitry and the sentinel exploded from the inside out. It tumbled to the ground and its floppy lifeless arm knocked into a wall of the Beat Street Club, effortlessly punching a hole into its side.
"New mutant powers detected."
The three remaining Mark 2 Sentinels responded in unison."Program updated."
Aurora had noted what Beast had done to bring one of the sentinels down. Picking up a large projectile she used it to telekinetically gouge a hole, the sentinel’s armour was strong and it took a lot of focus to gouge the hole. She had no choice but to move closer but instead of grabbing for internal wires she focussed everything on a full body flame up, focusing a large metal burning heat blast directly inside the hole she’d just opened.
"TEMPERATURE REGULATION PROTOCOLS IMPLEMENTED."
"Regulate this!" Levi flew up behind Aurora and sent a billowing gust of wind at the Sentinel.
The internal pressurization caused the abdominal chassis to crack, opening fissures for tongues of fire licking up from the inferno within. Between Aurora's combustion and Levi's fanning the flames, the Sentinel's internal mechanisms exploded, making its rickety flame topple in a heap of scrap.
As the Sentinel battle continued, a flash of red and blue traveled across the skyline. Moving with a graceful, almost poetic arc the lithe figure swung through the air with the aid of thin elastic webbing. Moving around the battlefield with ease and agility, he playfully commented on the scene unfolding beneath him. "And I thought the eviction process in Hell's Kitchen was bad..."
The red and blue clad figure landed on the roof of a nearby brownstone, crouching down into an alert and prepared position, he continued to speak to absolutely no one in particular. "Based on the amount of smoke coming from this location, I figured you could use some help from your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. And judging by the amount of damage you're causing, I was right!"
Spider-Man took to the air once more as he began to shoot nets of webbing across the building fronts that were damaged and risked toppling over. As he moved, he passed right in front of one of the Mark 2 Sentinels.
"New mutant powers detected."
The Mark 2 Sentinel responded."Program updated."
"Mutant!?!" Spider-Man scoffed. "How dare you! I'll have you know I'm radioactive in nature!"
"Spider bloo—"
"—pider blood—"
"—der blood detected."
The three remaining Sentinels were sounding off like a monotone chorus as they simultaneously confirmed one another's scans. A final correction was uttered by the first Sentinel.
"Radioactive spider blood detected. Destroy."
A hail of red laser fire rained down on the web-slinging intruder. What looked like certain death was nimbly averted through multiple back flips, somersaults, and spinning aerial roundoffs. Spider-Man's transition from air to ground back to air again was flawless, even if a few of the lasers singed the seams of his costume.
"Goodness, gracious, great balls of fire!" Spider-Man let out a chuckle. "And here I thought Hell's Kitchen was hot!"
"Radioactive mutant evading ranged fire. Proceeding to close quarters."
The three remaining Sentinels circled Spider-Man and closed the distance. Two of them shot out steel cables with grappling hooks.
"What's this? The Farmer and the Dell?!" Spider-Man flipped away from the first grab and twisted sideways in midair to avoid the second. "Hi, ho, the dairy-OHHHHH!"
It was a fantastic dodge, but it set up a series of unfortunate events. The first grappling hook struck the sidewalk and embedded deep enough into the concrete that it latched a water main while the second grappling hook pierced the leg of the opposite Sentinel and created a snagline. The third Sentinel had deferred the grappling hook, instead opting for a concussive sonic emitter that activated in its left hand. Taken by the concussive force, Spider-Man missed the slip and flipped directly into the first snagline and then the next. Dazed and confused, he fell head over heels onto the pavement. Between the grappling hook and the torque of Spider-Man crashing against both snaglines, the Sentinel with the grappling hook in his leg was pulled down on top of him.
“Ohh hell no!” Aurora was quick to fly over to the tangled mess of Sentinel that was lying over top of Spiderman. “Someone get ready to grab Spider-man!” She focussed her energy on raising the sentinel enough to allow a rescue.
“Let us hope that he has also inherited a spider’s propensity for somehow escaping being squashed,” muttered Hank as he attempted to shimmy under the Sentinel. He reached out a hand and felt a limb, so he grasped it and pulled gently but firmly.
Bliss started to hammer the bot with the sonic weapon. She turned her recycled boxing gloves against the device. The scrap of the gloves and the weapon soon crunched under her boots.
She began to tear into the exposed gaps of the next sentinel, burrowing into the chest. Once the armor was shredded, the insides looked like coils of tubes and wires.
Hank easily took hold of the arm and managed to pull it with surprisingly little resistance. The reason for the ease of the removal was soon discovered as only the arm of the Spectacular Spider-Man was recovered. Screams followed as a few lingering Beat Street civilians witnessed the death of New York’s greatest hero.
The collateral damage didn’t stop just because Spider-Man had fallen. A damaged apartment building started to collapse and a teetering streetlight smashed through the glass front of a barbershop. As Bliss ripped apart the sonic Sentinel, it began to spark and short circuit as water from the broken water main encroached on its feet.
Hayden had made it back to the brawl after getting a few more survivors out. And it looked like it was just in time. She wouldn't be able to manage all of the water as it was a main that was broken and flooding the street. But she could at least take care of some of it. Particularly at the Sentinel's feet. "Heads up, Escapade!" she called out. The young blonde steadied herself, one foot in front of the other and knees bent. She stretched out her arms, spread her fingers apart, and watched the water spray out away from the robot's feet.
With Hayden resolving the immediate risk of electrocution for anyone on the ground nearby, the electrical hazard sparked a fire on the destroyed building across from the Beat Street Club, to say nothing of the pulverized vehicles that were lined up in askew rows like a monster truck derby.
With only two Sentinels remaining, they got up from the ground and turned against the X-Men who were surrounding them.
"Overwhelming force. Explosive ordnance protocols engaged."
"TAKE THEM DOWN QUICKLY," Connor ordered the team. Collateral damage was already spreading and from the sound of it was about to get even worse. "NEUTRALIZE THEIR ARMS OR HEADS TO DEACTIVATE THEIR WEAPONS SYSTEMS."
One of the Sentinels had the Spider-Man cowl smeared across its chest like a window decal. It took aim at Connor and fired.
"Destroy mutant!"
One of its fingers launched from its hand, forming a warhead propelled by a rocket. Connor barely had time to finish giving instructions when he saw the finger rocket deploy straight at him.
“CONNOR!” Aurora wasn’t going to lose anyone else, flying over she placed herself between Connor and the finger covering them both with a shield before deflecting the finger rocket back at the Sentinel it came from.
The Sentinel deflected its own missile, though at the cost of its right hand. It raised its left hand and armed more warheads in its fingers.
Maeve had been doing her best to shield people from debris. Using the ground like a harden shield worked most of the time even if it did tire her. She also found out she could stop projectiles in mid-air, this being debris from fallen buildings but it took a lot of concentration. The hairs on the back of Maeve's neck rose as she saw a rocket fire at Connor, thankfully it was deflected and the right hand of the Sentinel destroyed but she noticed the left hand beginning prepare to fire.
"No..." she whispered as she opened both her hands up and started collecting debris from the ground to form into spheres. These would be her own rockets, minus the explosive impact. Although, if she hit the warheads when they armed maybe she would prove lucky as well.
The Sentinel's eyes red with anger and fire, even if they were complex robots with no emotion, she still made them sound more Human in her head. What happened to Spider-Man had made her angry, made her upset, so much so her body shook as much as the ground seemed to. She'd seen death before, caused it, but it had only ever been to bad people.
As two spheres finished forming, crushed and moulded into the perfect spheres, she pushed her hands out forwards and they accelerated at speed towards the Sentinels left hand with a scream, almost as if the scream itself propelled them.
Seconds felt like minutes as they flew through the air and slammed into the hand of the Sentinel as four detonations occurred in quick succession knocking the machine off its feet.
Maeve cheered a little, but failed to notice one of the rockets had launched. Her stomach jumped a little as it came at her with a speed she felt was much quicker than the previous machine men she'd fought. All she could do was dig her hands into the street and throw them upwards as if splashing someone in a pool of water. However, what this did was create a wall of earth, whatever the street was made of, in front of her and the rocket hit this with a force that shattered the wall and the shockwave threw Maeve into a nearby dumpster.
The force of the hit had knocked some of the wind out of her and she spat out a little blood from her mouth as she stood back up with a wince. A large Maeve-shaped dent was now left upon the dumpster, almost like a piece of street art had it been intended as such. From behind the dumpster she could hear the small whimpers of some kids hiding and she placed a hand out ushering them away from the area. "Go," she said softly through slightly bloodied teeth.
"Offensive measures exhausted. Initiating self-destruct."
Maeve snapped up and looked at the Sentinel. There were still people in the streets and she knew she had to do something. She began to speak Gaelic, and old language often spoken in her village back in Ireland. It was said to call upon the strength of the ancestors, of the Earth, to protect those in need.
There were flashes, almost like ghostly images, that ran through Maeve's mind as her eyes turned black and the ground began to quake. Splits in the ground formed, cracks that began to widen and shape unnaturally. The Sentinel looked down as if scanning its terrain before it was quickly swallowed up by a swell of sidewalk and street itself. Maeve stood tall, defiant almost, as a small explosion could be heard. The ground did not split, no eruption. This explosion was deep down, far beyond what had been man made.
However, they were safe.
Shaking her head, freeing her mind of what felt like cobwebs, her eyes returned to normal and she turned to find the rest of her team.
Kennedy approached the battlefield that had been created in the middle of a city block. Death and destruction ensued simply because they refused to surrender to the hateful submission these Sentinels demanded. The injustice and indignity filled her with a rage that superseded any hesitation her lack of preparation had provided.
She moved up behind the final sentinel and placed both of her hands on its idle metal foot. With anger fueling her actions, Kennedy exerted herself and transferred all the kinetic energy she could muster until the Sentinel gleamed and shimmered with her power.
“Caveman!” Kennedy looked towards Connor, his immunity to her power was critical in this moment. “Punch it!”
Saved from certain death and playing catchup to the battlefield, Connor snapped back into the moment at Kennedy's shout. He nodded at her and took swift action from the lay of the land he'd snapped in his mind. He jumped from the hood of a car to the roof and then onto the trailer of a box truck. The vantage point gave him several meters to sprint into a flying leap that grabbed hold of the traffic lights that were blinking red over the intersection. Swinging around several times like a gymnast, Connor generated enough momentum to release from the traffic light into a flying dropkick that struck the kinetically charged Sentinel in the chest.
Much to his surprise, the 20-plus ton monstrosity lumbered backward to keep its balance. What's more was that after making contact, Connor felt the same burning, tingling sensation from when Kennedy had sent him flying after he had dared her to test her powers on him back at the X-Mansion. If the conservation of energy meant anything, then he had absorbed an unknown level of energy she had applied to the Sentinel. While its frame was weakening, Connor felt his body surge with power which demanded to be released.
He clung to the Sentinel's chestplate even as it began to loosen and pry from the rest of the frame. Pulling himself up, Connor sprawled across the Sentinel's gigantic face and looked it right in the eye. Making his fist as tight as possible, he punched the red entoptic sensor with all his might. The transfer of energy exploded from his fist and shattered the poly-silicate material like candy glass.
Even more energy flowed into Connor, urging him to consider all the possibilities. There would be time for that later. Survival meant acting immediately even without knowing all the answers to his many questions. This time he let the energy course through him from head to toe, building strength somehow from his force of will alone. Looking the Sentinel in its lone remaining ocular sensor, Connor raised his hands up as he prepared to dropkick it in the face. One hand held up the middle finger while the other formed a a ring from his thumb and forefinger.
"FUCK YOU, ASSHOLE," said the device in Connor's chestplate as he executed a springboard backflip off the Sentinel's face.
The release of kinetic energy that he had somehow absorbed and released back into the Sentinel after Kennedy had charged it in the first place was too much for the machine's structure integrity. It began shedding parts like a snowman in a heatwave, scrap falling apart as it gave up its digital ghost. Connor flew backward, though not as far as he'd expected. The force of his kick had not rebounded against him, but rather knocked the Sentinel's head clean off. It was so surprising that Connor didn't stick the landing, but instead tumbled head over elbow onto the sidewalk.
Aurora caught up with Connor, landing beside him to take a breather. “Nice one Connor, Are you alright?”
"Owww..." Connor moaned as he sat up.
Kennedy’s knees wobbled from the amount of energy she had exerted from charging such a large object. Choosing to sit rather than buckle from the fatigue, she sat down in the street with a plop. From this view, the destruction created by the sentinel attack was monumental. Power and water lines had been damaged and numerous buildings had been destroyed by the crashing sentinels, and of course the broken body of Spider-Man remained in the street.
Mustering enough strength to stand up again, Kennedy went back to the donation bins that were now in shambles. Finding an oversized coat, she went over and covered the body that remained in the street.
“Can we go home now?” Kennedy asked the team in a remorseful and defeated tone.
But the bus they had ridden on to get there was smashed by a fallen utility pole. Going home was a chore in itself now.
Bliss knelt down next to the dead webslinger, staring at the body under the dirty coat.
"He wasn't even a mutant, he was just a good person trying to do the right thing. And they killed him for it."
Connor walked up behind Bliss, mostly to see if she was alright but also to share in the horror of the moment.
"Who knows when they're going to come looking for us at home. Hell, they may even be there waiting for us now. All I know is I'm not going down without taking as many of them with me, I'm not talking about the stupid robots. They are only taking orders."
"THAT IS BROTHERHOOD TALK," Connor said through his device while his hands signed his thoughts. "WE ARE X-MEN. PROFESSOR X WILL FIND WHO DID THIS AND WE WILL EXPOSE THEM, JUST LIKE THE PURIFIERS." He patted Bliss on the shoulder before removing it and adding, "COME ON. WE SHOULD MAKE SURE EVERYONE IS ACCOUNTED FOR."
Bliss began to search for their people within the battle zone, her expression quite grim. She had met hundreds of mutants on her trip to New York State from Nevada. She could see their faces in her mind. Humans are going to be killing each and every one of them. A fresh grimace appeared on her pretty face at the thought of the little girl with the amazing artistic abilities at the Burger joint back home. Someone wanted her crushed under one of these giant robots' feet. The opportunities to stop these monsters were going to be far and few between.
"Anyone need help? I'm listening!"
Aurora sighed as she paid her respects to Spider-Man. “I’m sorry, if I’d have been quicker, I could have saved you...” She shook her head and walked away.
Maeve gingerly walked passed to Aurora. She didn't know what to say, anything would sound so insincere in her mind. Instead she carved a small rock with her finger in the shape of Spider-Man's mask and placed it on top of the coat. It wasn't much but a token nonetheless. She whispered a small prayer for him in Gaelic and looked at the rest of the team who had formed near the fallen hero.
“Does anybody know if he had a next of kin?” Hank asked softly, both angry and sad at once. “Surely there is someone who cared for him.”
Connor picked up a crumpled up rack card that had fallen out of Spider-Man's pocket. It read FUTURE FOUNDATION. "PERHAPS THIS COULD TELL US," Connor suggested. "FOR NOW, WE SHOULD GATHER EVERYONE FROM THE SUBWAY STATION."
The 24st Street Station was jam packed as usual, but the reunions between the younger students from Xavier's and the Fallen Angels who had followed them was bittersweet and beautiful. Meilin met the eyes of Ty and Tany, the three of them sharing a sad nod. They were not without casualties. The days that followed would be filled with more than just rebuilding.
"Thank you, X-Men," said Meilin who lingered behind while Ty and Tandy escorted the others to the darkest corner of the station. "Especially Iris, Hayden, and Ethan. Your assistance in getting the children to safety a lot of lives today. That is what we will remember most." She dipped her head and turned to follow the last of the Fallen Angel stragglers. "Zài jiàn and goodbye."
On their way to the station, Connor had already done a safety check on everyone. No serious injuries.
"WE STOPPED THE BAD GUYS AND DID NOT LEAVE ANYONE BEHIND," Connor said to them all. "WE DID GOOD."
It fell hollow, but it sounded like something a good leader would say. Connor met as many eyes as he could and nodded in emphasis.
A harsh finger-whistle came from up the stairs leading to the street. That would be Hank with a new bus rental. Connor clapped his hands. "BUS IS HERE." He looked at Kennedy who had first made the suggestion that he was about to repeat. "LET'S GO HOME."
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