Port of No Return

Posted on Thu Jan 30th, 2025 @ 1:47am by Connor Bruin & Kurt Wagner & Hayden Davis & Kennedy Kelly & Kayleigh Marshall & Maeve MacKenna & Drew Williams

2,798 words; about a 14 minute read

Mission: Episode 6: X-Fernus Agenda
Location: Genosha
Timeline: December 4, 1990

The Blackbird soared silently above the darkened waters of the Indian Ocean, its matte-black surface blending with the starless night sky. The rhythmic crash of waves below was a muted whisper inside the craft, drowned out by the steady hum of its engines. At the cockpit, Connor piloted with computer-assisted autopilot which allowed him to keep a weather eye on the situation rather than just the instrumentation panel. Behind him, the team sat quietly, their focus sharp as the mission drew near.

Far ahead, Genosha loomed faintly on the horizon, its silhouette barely discernible against the faint haze of artificial light that hung over the island. Even from this distance, the team could see the telltale shimmer of drones circling the airspace, weaving an intricate security net. These unmanned machines skated the water's surface or hovered low, their purpose clear—nothing was getting in or out without notice.

"Good zhing ve abandoned zhat plan," Kurt said for everyone. "Nobody ees getting in by air."

"No doubt," said Hayden. "I can't see that ending well at all. It doesn't really make Genosha look any more inviting either."

“It’s not very welcoming, is it?” Kennedy said as she leaned forward in her chair to get a better look. Genosha was a fortress of an island with high walls and extensive security. “It definitely gives off the same vibe as North Korea does.”

Drew took a peek and went wide eyed. "That's a LOT of security"

Kayleigh looked as well. "Wow! you're not kidding!"

Maeve was silent as she looked at the upcoming island. All that security felt like it was better at keeping people in as well as keeping unwanted intruders out.

Below the jet, a barge cut through the water, its lumbering form barely distinguishable from the inky ocean. Stamped discreetly along its side was a faded logo: L.I.F.E. Foundation Logistics. The barge's deck was cluttered with shipping containers stacked high, their numbers and markings obscured by rust and salt spray. A skeleton crew moved about, their flashlights cutting narrow beams through the gloom as they went about their duties, unaware of the sleek aircraft descending toward them.

"WE ARE 100 MILES FROM THE PORT," Connor announced over the Blackbird’s comms. "THIS IS AS CLOSE AS THE BLACKBIRD CAN GET WITHOUT RISKING DETECTION."

Hayden moved up to one of the windows in the cockpit so that she could see the barge below. She stared for a moment at the surrounding ocean and the waves before she closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, concentrating. After a few seconds, she opened her eyes and stared at the waves crashing into the forward section of the barge. Her usual bright blue eyes and serene gaze had changed to match the dark, turbulent waters of the ocean below them.

Hayden tilted her head slightly to the side and the waves crashed with more intensity. She held up her right hand and curled her fingers in a continuous motion. The summoned waves grew larger and more numerous in addition to the intensity. She closed her hand into a fist and nodded, satisfied with the outcome.

She turned to Connor and said, "That should slow them down. I can set it back to normal once everyone is on the deck." Her countenance stayed the same and would go back to normal once she had stopped the storm surge.

The pitch and yaw of the barge slightly increased from the rushing waves, but it's speed visibly reduced by several knots. Maybe not much, though it would definitely have the attention of the crew on the bridge and it might give Kurt the edge on teleporting onto a moving target.

"GOOD JOB," Connor signed with one hand.

Kurt adjusted his gloves, his golden eyes gleaming faintly in the low light of the cabin. "Ja, mein freund. Give me und moment... for best results, I must visualize vhere I am going."

As the Blackbird slowed, its engines quieting further in stealth mode, the barge came into clearer view. The faint glow of its navigation lights reflected off the choppy waves, and the tang of salt filled the air through the jet's open hatch. Connor brought the craft low, keeping it just above the surface of the water to minimize radar detection.

Touching a hand to his forehead and waving, he Kurt said, "I vill scout ze barge first und come vhen I hef found a safe place for us all."

Kurt vanished in a puff of brimstone, leaving the faint stench of sulfur in his wake. In the eerie quiet that followed, the team waited, every second stretching as they watched the barge grow larger in the distance. As suddenly as he had disappeared, Kurt returned in another bamf. "Zhere is an empty container vhere I can take us togezher in ein trip."

"EVERYBODY JOIN HANDS AND MAKE READY." Connor finished signing and then took up his gear before extending either hand to form a small circle with the team.

Hayden took Connor's left hand and extended her right one. "Let's go."

Kennedy stood up and strapped her full quiver to her thigh before collecting her compound bow and draping it across her shoulder. Artemis made her way over to Kurt and took his other hand, helping to form a circle along with the others. “At least we’ll be shielded from the wind in a shipping container.”

Drew unstrapped himself and rose to his feet. He took hands with the others in the gathering circle.

Kayleigh smiled politely as she joined next to Drew, taking his hand and holding on. "Good to go, fingers crossed we don't run into any difficulties."

Maeve took up the free hand of whomever she was next to. This was a 'now or never' moment, or so it felt. Infiltrating an island full of potentially powerful mutants almost made her heart skip a beat.

With a puff of brimstone and a thunderclap of displaced air, the team vanished from the Blackbird and reappeared inside the dim confines of an empty shipping container. The stale metallic air inside the container was a stark contrast to the fresh ocean breeze. The walls were painted in muted shades of rust, and the faint groaning of the barge's frame underscored their presence.

Connor reached into his pack and cracked a glow stick. The eerie green light illuminated their faces in the pitch-black space. Raising a finger to his lips, Connor gestured for silence and gave a sharp nod toward Hayden.

Hayden balled a fist at arms length and then spread her fingers out slowly. The waves gradually slowed, shrank, and decreased in intensity. The ocean went back to normal and so did her eyes.

Inside the container Maeve felt her anxiety grow. She felt trapped, enclosed, much like she did on the ship that brought her to the USA with so many others. Her breath quickened, her heart rate increased and she could feel a sweat start to form on her body. Inside the container small particles of dirt began to rise up just a couple of inches off the ground. They would go no higher but instead just move around slowly as her mind lost its focus and her emotions took over.

After what felt like an eternity of silence, the barge finally came to a halt. The hum of machinery and the distant chatter of dockworkers became audible as the container swayed slightly, signaling their arrival. Connor gestured for the team to follow him as he pushed the container door open just enough to peer outside.

The barge's deck was alive with activity. Dockworkers maneuvered forklifts and cranes to unload cargo, while armed guards patrolled the area, their eyes sharp and unyielding. The team ducked low and moved as one, weaving between crates and containers until they had a clearer vantage of the port. Connor pointed toward the top of a warehouse on the far side of the pier. It would provide an excellent view of both the harbor and the city beyond.

Kurt prepared himself, shaking his hands out before holding them forward. "Get ready, meine Freunde. Ze next stop vill be a bit breezy."

With another puff of brimstone, the group appeared on the rooftop of the warehouse. The air was cool and still, the occasional sound of metal creaking below carrying up to meet them. Connor crouched at the edge, scanning the harbor and the sprawling city beyond, before gesturing for the others to take a look and familiarize themselves with their surroundings. There were only so many teleports Kurt could pull off with the entire group in a short period, so they had to make them count.

The harbor itself was a hive of activity. Forklifts darted between towering stacks of cargo containers, and cranes hauled massive crates from the ships onto waiting trucks. Armed guards moved methodically among the workers, their presence a constant reminder of the rigid control over the port. The bright lights of the dock illuminated the scene, casting long shadows across the concrete.

Beyond the checkpoint, the city spread wide and low, its uneven sprawl a patchwork of urban life. Thick traffic clogged a busy boulevard that ran parallel to the port, and the hum of engines mingled with the occasional honk of a horn. Clusters of tenement housing dotted the rolling hills, growing denser closer to the waterfront. Above it all, expensive residences perched on the ridges, their lights twinkling like stars in the distance under the bright moonlight.

Connor motioned toward the urban sprawl beyond the port. "THIS IS OUR FIRST OPPORTUNITY TO OBSERVE. STAY LOW. WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THE LAYOUT BEFORE WE MOVE ANY FURTHER."

As if on cue, one of the guards near the checkpoint suddenly jumped up and took to the air. The drone of engines faded momentarily as the flying guard soared above the harbor, his shadow sweeping over the crowd below. His face was hidden by an armored helmet, obscuring anything more than his militant prowess as his path bringing him uncomfortably close to the warehouse.

Connor gestured sharply for everyone to stay low, his hand cutting through the air with urgency. The team pressed themselves against the roof, holding their breath as the flying guard circled once before moving farther away, his trajectory carrying him toward another sector of the harbor.

Kurt let out a soft sigh of relief. "Zhey take security... very seriously."

At first, the movements of Genosha seemed like those of a busy city mixed with strict military drills but the longer Kennedy watched the more unusual behavior she began to notice. There was a definite hierarchy amongst the civilians with the lower caste dressing in clothing that was a dull grey in color. Those dressed in grey all seemed brow beaten and hunched, a stance of broken submission especially when compared to the guards who navigated the docks with a degree of confidence that only came from absolute power.

As Kennedy watched them unload shipping containers, one was opened directly on the dock. What she saw them removing from the container caused her to gasp out loud.
“It’s people!”

The team’s attention was pulled to the mass of filthy and frightened bodies being removed from the container. As they funneled out a girl covered in pink fur came into view, then another with a pair of gossamer wings, followed by a boy with a long orange tail. A striking similarity amongst all of them was observed – thick white collars around their necks.

“Not just people, but mutants.” Kennedy covered her mouth in upset as she watched them drag out a scale covered man who started to scream and protest. “What do we do?”

Drew looked at the terrified group of people being herded out of the container. Some were just children, no older than the young girl whose hair Kennedy had brushed after the Thanksgiving celebration. His first instinct was to rush down there and do something...anything...to free these people.

He looked at Connor as well, an idea forming in his mind. "It's possible that Ty and Tandy are being held wherever those guard are taking these people. I recommend following behind. Find out where they're being taken.

Maeve looked down at those poor souls as a memory flashed before her eyes. Of being shouted at, beaten, at hearing the noises of much worse. She had been trafficked to the USA, not that many, or any, of her classmates knew that. Only The Professor knew. Subconsciously she felt her wrists where she'd been shackled, a pain formed in her chest as her hands rose to meet it. Her breath trembled as she struggled to even speak as she stepped back from what she saw. An attempt to distance herself from 'being caught'. "No, no, no." she mumbled to herself as she felt her mind slipping, her emotions rising.

The building they stood on creaked, almost like it was feeling these emotions with her. A rumbling in the ground itself could be heard as she began to panic, to lose control. She couldn't be here, she couldn't get caught again. Restraints were bad enough but those collars... to be treated as a thing, as cattle, as a commodity to be used up and thrown out. That was the mindset of those that trafficked people. You weren't a person, you were property, and that was dangerous. Maeve had lost control before, that's how those evil men died. Spikes of earth through their heartless bodies, the first and last time she'd killed. Maybe she needed to lose control a little, let that anger seep in. Maybe that would help free those under the heel of their oppressors.

Deep rumbling beneath their feet grew into a violent tremor as Maeve's fear took hold. The warehouse groaned under the force of the quake, metal beams groaning and rattling against the shifting foundation. Loose debris tumbled from the rooftop, crashing onto crates and scattering dockworkers below. The frightened captives barely had time to react before every uniformed guard in the vicinity snapped to attention, weapons raised.

Connor turned sharply toward Maeve, signing with urgency. "MORRIGAN, YOU HAVE TO STOP." The digital voice of his speech-generating device struggled to rise above the chaos.

Beneath the warehouse, the ground pulsed in tandem with her rapid heartbeat, an extension of her unraveling emotions.

Kurt reached out, grabbing Maeve's arm in an attempt to ground her. "Fraulein, ve hef to go now!"

But it was too late.

A sharp whistle split the night air. The response was immediate. Guards swarmed toward the rooftop from all sides, mobilized with military precision. The security checkpoint below came alive with klaxons, and heavy floodlights pivoted toward the disturbance, painting the rooftop in stark white.

Then the sky roared.

A gust of wind howled across the harbor, whipping through the shipping yard with unnatural ferocity. The once-calm night turned violent as dark clouds gathered overhead, swirling in a vortex of ominous intent. Rain lashed against the tin rooftops, sheets of water drenching the concrete as distant thunder rumbled.

And then, she descended. The flying guard was no ordinary soldier.

Tall and statuesque, she moved through the air with effortless grace, white hair whipping around her regal face like a storm given form. Her piercing blue eyes carried the weight of command as they rolled back in her head. A long, dark coat billowed behind her as she hovered just above the rooftop, framed by the electric fury of the storm she had summoned. Her expression was unreadable, yet absolute until she gave herself over fully to the elements who rose to her call.

Connor's breath hitched. He knew power when he saw it. This was almost certainly an Omega level mutant.

The woman's eyes narrowed as she gazed down at them with chilling authority. "You are in violation of Genoshan law," she declared, her voice carrying over the storm with an almost supernatural clarity. "You will surrender now."

Thunder and lightning cracked behind her, illuminating the stunned faces of the team. They barely had time to react before she raised one gloved hand to the sky. A moment later, the heavens answered.

Lightning rained down in blinding, furious succession. The first blast struck the rooftop mere feet from Kennedy, sending her flying backward. The second arced into Connor’s chest, forcing a strangled cry from his voicebox as his muscles locked. Another bolt seared across Drew’s vision before he even had time to dodge.

Kayleigh, Maeve, Hayden, one by one, the X-Men fell.

As consciousness faded from each of them, the last thing they saw was the storm-wielding woman alighting onto the rooftop, her glowing eyes the last beacon of light before darkness took them.

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