| Taming of the Storm | |||||
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| What: The trap, laid by vampires, to strip Ororo of her powers, which will lead her to join Dresden's vampire hunters. | |||||
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Three older students approached Storm earlier in the evening. "Ma'am, we have some friends that we're worried for and we're hoping maybe you could help?" they said. Soon the story was laid out, the three in their spare time had been volunteering at a local soup kitchen, what better place for a boy who can duplicate anything he touches, a girl with minor healing ability, and another who had lived on the very streets not six months ago. "Lately at the soup kitchen fewer and fewer of the regulars have been coming in. IT's not out of the ordinary, but there was one, his name is Bruce, he's lived in that area for the better part of fourty years and has never missed a sunday at the kitchen. He's been missing for the last three weeks, nobody has seen him. I know we can't go down into the tunnels, but do you think you could do something? We would just die if he were down there hurt and nobody had gone to try and help him." they said the three looking very worried and concerned..
Ororo Munroe nods. "Of course, children..." she murmurs. "I've helpeda t that soup kitchen myself. I even know Bruce," she murmurs. " Alright - I'll take care of it." She doesn't have her totems iwth her - but she's confident in her abilities with weather for whateverh appens as she slides into the tunnels and goes to investigate.
The tunnels are easy to find, some of them are where the Morlocks like to take roost, others are where just normal people down on their luck and strapped for cash go. Traveling through the tunnels, old abandoned subway tunnels deeper in the ground than the newer ones that are in use now adays. Normally pretty crowded and bustling, there's only a few people huddled in the corners in their dirty and torn clothing, junkies and drunks a few burning barrels light the areas around them sending everything else into darkness. Ororo Munroe nods as her eyes start to glow as she floats down, a tiny orb of ball lightning held in her hand to light her path as she delves deeper into the tunnels. She sighs, rubbing her forehead. "I hope this is just... well... not that big of deal..." she mutters. The people shy away from the glowing floating lady, a mother clutching her daughters cover them with her body as three 20 something year olds near one burning barrel start to slowly back away into the darkness.. other sounds of people getting the hell out of dodge can be heard even as others, too high or drunk to care lay where they are, or stand where they are a few looking at the woman slack jawed in awe.. one guy even looks down at his brown paper sack and throws the bottle into a near by barrel with a crash of glass and a flare of burning alcohol
There is one amongst the group, brown haired with a faint scar over one eye who looks directly at Ororo with a frown.
Ororo Munroe continues, frowning. She is still looking for Bruce. She hasn't seen him yet. She glances at the guy with the scar, eyebrow raised, but continues her search, hmmmming happily.
The tunnels can go forever in all directions, if one weren't careful they could easily get lost down in the tunnels people continue to scatter with the exception of the one scarred face that seems to be eyeballing the floating mutant. It goes this wy for a minute.. two.. after five Ororo feels something tug on the flaps that help her hover, a little girl of maybe five or six has climbed out of a near by box her face dirty, streaked with tears "Can you help me find my mommy?" the girl asks pitifully..
Ororo Munroe sighs softly as she glances at the little girl. "Well, alright..." she murmurs as she lands, letting the ball lightning float. "I'm looking for a friend of mine. His name is Bruce. Slightly older, beard, might smell funny..." she then picks the girl up and starts floating back towards the last people she saw.
The scarred man has been tailing Ororo. His clothes aren't much better than others down here, though if she's looking, his heavy shoes look out of place. He's not really going out of his way to keep hidden, but he's also keeping back a bit, now observing her interaction with the small girl.
The little girl weighs next to nothing and curls up against the hero shivvering and clinging. "I dunno Bwuce.. Mommy and I just got here las week, but she and some others went that way and mommy never came back, she told me to stay hidden in our box, but that was forever ago.. " the girl mentions sniffling, tears threatening to well up again as she speaks her plight..
Ororo Munroe :sighs osftly, rubbing her forehead, as she sees the man following her - but pays no attention. She then goes back to the previous people and lands, and asks if they can take care of her. "I have to go looking for missing people... there's something very wrong down people..." She smiles as she strokes her face. "I'll look for your mommy, dear..." She finds that woman in the threadbare dress and asks her to care for the child for a bit.
At this pronouncement, the scarred man walks up to Ororo. "You're looking into the disappearances down here, silver?" he asks. He seems wary, but convinced of her good intent from what he's seen of her so far.
Ororo Munroe nods. "Yes," she states. "You can call me Storm," she states, floating a few inches again, the ball lighting floating around her. "I volunteer at a soup kitchen near here and some students of mine stated that some people have gone missing - this child's mother is missing too - down these tunnels."
"Marc." the man replies simply, and nods his head in the direction the girl had indicated. "It's more than just a few; There's been dozens missing, and a lot of them just in the last few days. I've been trying to zero in on to where.. sounds like of the people missing here, a lot of them went that way." he pauses a minute, his gaze hardening in an almost unnatural flicker of expression as he adds cooly, "Nice trick." when she starts to float again.
Ororo Munroe nods. "Let's go. My codename waschosen for a reason..." She blinks as the orb contineus to be bright. "Honestly - I don't like coming down here. I'm claustrophobic... but my light keeps things ok... it's comforting..." The crackling orb brightens a bit. "Can you take me to where they were?" she asks.
Marc replies, "If you're claustrophobic, this may not be the place for you, silver. But." he shrugs.. "I have some rough directions on where some of them were last seen. After that, all I have is guesswork."
The tunnel is old, older than the antique subway tunnel that it's attached to.. and starts to wind down to where one can see rubble has been cleared out by hand the tunnel widening till it becomes less a tunnel and more a natural opening in the bedrock that starts to narrow again.. soon the two are walking single file the light of the lightning ball the only light, their footsteps the only sound. the narrow passage turns sharply to the left and when he turns the corner a dark oak door can be found out of place amongst everything else an antique door handle made out of some silvery metal reflects the faint lightning light..
Marc Spector frowns at the total incongruity of the door, stopping a moment. "..Why do I feel like this is what we've been looking for?" he asks her over his shoulder. He steps forward to examine the door curiously, though something's making his skin crawl a bit. He hasn't really stopped to think about why yet as he reaches for the door handle, though Storm might see something glowing faintly through the threadbare sweat shirt he's wearing.
Ororo Munroe nods as she sighs softly, not really looking at Marc. "Hmmmm...." she whispers softly. She touches a spot on her uniform and murmurs, "I'm going to need backup... I'd like two people outside the tunnels...." She gives the address. "Do not come down here unless I give the signal." She listens and nods. "Open it," she states, ready to attack whoever opens that door.
Marc Spector raises an eyebrow at the command, but something about the bearing and confidence of the woman keeps him from really being bothered by it; if she's really troubled by the tight quarters, he'd never have guessed it.. He grabs the handle and twists it to open.. but then hisses, jerking his hand away. "What the hell?!" did...the doorknob just twist like some sort of metallic snake to bite him?
With a click the blood stained doorknob opens on its own dark black sigils flaring around its edges as the door slams into the inner wall with an echoing rebound showing an ampetheater made of terraced stones with no seats of any sort about fifteen feet across and twenty feet deep a couple dozen hobos and vagrants stand around seemingly mindless their shirts and clothing covered in black blood that doesn't reflect the red light pulsing in the ceiling in the center above three female.. things... wearing black gowns that billow out about them, their skin is pale, grey and cracking in places, their eyes milky white cataract filled orbs the trio look up and let out a shriek as the door opens one brings it's hands up and speaking a language wholly not human launches a fireball the size of a soccer ball of brilliant blue fire towards the door
Ororo Munroe stares. "VAMPIRES!" she yells. She jumps out of the way when the ball of fire comes as she simply fires a blast of lightning at one of the floating creatures. She doesn't know two of them but one... one she knows far too well. "LIGEIA! I'll burn you to ash!" she shrieks as she unleashes wind along the ground, blowing the thralls over as she focuses all her rage on the one who tormented her so in the past.
Marc Spector swears, diving to the floor to evade the fireball, and then staying there to avoid the lightning. Well, this got lively fast! Moon Knight reaches into the jacket he's wearing over the sweat shirt, and pulls forth a glimmering silver crescent throwing dart. He whispers a few quick words to it, and throws the divinely charged missile at the nearest vampire while the back of his minds wonders about Storm's shouts of recognition.
The lightning strikes against a shield erected by one of the others in the central dias "KILL THEM!" the three yell in unison as the newly turned vampires suddenly turn and start to run at Moon Knight and Storm hissing and screaming they launch themselves like barbarian berserkers the holy missle slams into the closest vampire.
Ligeia sneers at the heroes "You /will/ serve our master" she says "Sisters! protect me" the woman commands reaching into a satchel as the thralls mob the two heroes she pulls out and with a flick of her wrist lights and places five black candles as the others chant the red light going out in the center of the room to only show the 5 points of blue flame as Ligea starts to chant dark energies starting to form in the spellform that is the focus..
Ororo Munroe sighs softly. "All those people - they're corpses walking. Destroy them..." She feels magic in the air - but can't focus enough on it as she fires blasts of lightning as the thralls, dropping many where they stand, the lightning arcing from one to the next in brilliant flashes of light as her lightning ball remains there. "You're slipping, Ligeia! Your cannon fodder was tougher last time. You're next!" she calls as she continues her relentless assault. Storm took an oath not to take another life. But... these monsters are already dead and she has no compunctions."
Marc Spector springs to his feet, throwing himself against an inside wall to stay out of any further elemental cross fire. Though when he glances to the three, it looks like something else is afoot-- a ritual? Oh, that can't be good.. the imbued dart sticks in the newly turned thrall's chest, burning like acid in the low level vampire's chest.. it may not be a stake to the heart, but depending on the type of vampire, it might be just as deadly. Moon Knight throws another, aiming for the one doing the ritual, but it catches another thrall's waving arm with another hiss of smoke and holy energy.
He doesn't get a chance to throw another..those not taken down by Storm's burst of lightning are approaching fast, and he switches to a slim metal truncheon that telescopes into a fighting staff...if they think he will be easy prey, then they haven't heard of Moon Knight.
the minions drop in droves the lightning burning out their hearts as easily as any stake would do the bodies piling up around the dim light of the ball of lightning as the three elder vampires stand fast. 24 soon becomes 18, then with another blast of lighting it's down to 8 as they slam into Marc trying to claw and bite at him others moving past him (or trying) to get after Storm.
Ligeia just snarls not responding to Storms taunts as she chants, then she does something no spell caster ever wants to hear. "Ororo Munroe, Betrayer of my master, Ororo Munroe, once sister and kindred spirit, Ororo Monroe Once queen, Thrice I curse ye for as long as I exist you shall be left bereft of your gift of the blood, die as the fodder you are." she says the five black candles going out at the same time as the ball of lightning vanishes "Sisters... bring me their heads." she says her voice carrying from the center as their are twin shrill screams like that of a Bean Sidhe...
((Harry Dresden pages: Storm.. you feel something or someone appear behind you cool air/mist moving past you in the darkness before you can react to soidify behind you 'Die' you hear ligea's voice as you are bitten and fed upon for a breif moment the presence gone Ligea escaping out the dark doorway behind you..))
The room is cast into darkness... as the lightning stops. Even the glow of Ororo's eyes is gone. Ororo just freezes, whmipering faintly, shaking - then she shrieks in pain as she feels something on her neck. She flails, as she turns to run, and hits a wall, starting to cry. She doesn't have any source of light with her.
Moon Knight strikes them with the staff, the blows still charged with enough holy energy it might stun those hit hard enough, even if it's not a kill shot. It does allow him to trip those that head for Storm; to his mind, her powers are clearly slaying vampires faster than he can, so the smart thing to do is keep them both alive and let her keep right on doing it. "Any idea what they're cooking up over there?!" he calls to her, then answers his own question in clipped tones, "It's some dark ritual!" to which he groans, muttering, "Thanks, yes." Though as the vampire leader calls out her curse, culminating in the other two tearing towards them and shrieking, the question may become moot...and the light goes out. Not good. Moon Knight shoves the lackeys back with his staff, trying to clear space as he shouts, "Fry them! What are you doing, fry these bastards!"
Twin charging Rhinos come barreling past Moonknight "Kill him" voices in stero order the last few thralls the vampires thralls included having no problem in the darkness seeing their prey the sisters grab Ororo and slam her up against the wall
"We are going"
"To make this slow.."
"Sister/Sister" they say raking claws across Ororo's stomach leaving small trails of blood "Flay the flesh off her bones sister!" one says excitedly...
Thankfully Moon Knight can see just fine in the dark, and as Ororo starts sobbing and panicking, it's clear she's not going to be lighting up any more vampires just now. In the brief respite after he forcefully shoves back the remaining thralls with his staff, Moon Knight grabs for another crescent blade. He doesn't have time to get in front of Storm before the two elders charge her, but he does manage to lash out the divinely charged blade to rake one of their arms or torsos if he's lucky.. in either case he shouts, "Don't make the mistake of ignoring Khonshu's champion, fiend!" with all the totally serious conviction of someone from a cartoon. He doesn't even seem to care he's inviting these elders on top of the half dozen that won't be held back long.
Ororo Munroe just starts screaming, writhing, fallen on the ground, blood coming out of her neck, two puncture marks, and more claw marks appearing on her. She is compeltely paralyzed with fear and pain... and is panicking like a scared child as she flails, occasionally striking one of the hags...
There's no bugle call or anything like that. Nope, just a handful of oversized glowsticks used for cave exploration flung into the room lighting things up. It's followed immediately by twin beams of frigid energy lancing out at the vampires attacking Storm. Iceman is the source of these beams and since he's been told they're vampires and hearing Storm in such fear and pain...he's not too inclinced to hold back. He's not caring if those vampires get frozen solid, focusing more on blasting them away from his teammate as he enters via ice slide. One gets hit squarely and is frozen solid in a pillar of ice, the other though is able to dodge out of the way Storm getting let go to fall to the floor as she raises her arms a blue ball of intense eldritch fire forming between her hands leaving her wide open for an attack from Moon Knight. The other vampires though do as they were last orderd all of them leaping at once at Moon Knight claws extended scraping at the mans armor and body with maddened hunger fueled screams
the scarred man is not fighting defensively anymore as Moon Knight fully comes into his own; The staff is forgotten in favor of two of the crescent blades, lashing out at the torso of any vampire who presents a likely opening, weather this leaves him exposed to retaliation or not. He drops a few, though his focus is most definitely on the two tormenting Storm.. though that number drops to one as the glow sticks and ice blasts herald Iceman's arrival. Moon Knight doesn't even blink, simply switching targets to stab the remaining one square in the back with the divinely charged blade if she didn't take his warning to face him. That will teach her to underestimate the protector of those who travel at night, as far as Moon Knight is concerned... though there's still four or so thralls 'alive' and likely hot on his heels...
Ororo Munroe is curled up in fetal position, just trying to protect herrself - but the light calms her a bit, but not enough. She is still looking terrible, and bleeding profusely from several wounds. She's too shaky to do much good as she raisesh er hand, but again... nothing.
Since his ice slide makes for an easy target in the cramped space, Iceman steps off it and to the side. "Lady, you pissed off the wrong mutant," he declares in an icy tone when he sees that fireball. His eyes flick to the scraggly looking homeless guy with the knives and for a moment, he has to wonder what he's seeing. But then he notices the remaining thralls and stomps a foot on the ground. Thanks to the season and all those recent snow storms, there's plenty of moisture for him to work with and that makes it all the easier to send ice racing across the floor to spring up rapidly to smash and freeze those thralls. He's as accurate as he is violent, targeting just the vampires and leaving Moon Knight clear to get stabbity.
The vampire's spell vanishes on her finger tips as unlife fades from her body silence desending on the trio the only noise being their breathing, and the occasional whimpers from Storm the woman looking like a remake of Carrie with so much blood running down her torso, arms and legs her head the only thing surprisingly bloodless and growing paler by the moment...
That and the burning hiss of holy power on vampire flesh.. though that fades too as the unlife leaves her. Moon Knight glances around, but sees that thanks to Iceman, all the thralls are entirely decimated. It's just them.. he kneels by Storm, not bothering to explain himself for now. He just wipes away the blood on her neck to see how bad the wound there is. "Storm?" he says, tone still brusque more than concerned, though he is trying to help.
Ororo Munroe whimpers. "Surface... please..." she whispers softly. The puncture wounds are bleeding - it looks like a neat bite but the blood won't stop. The scrapes along her front and back are bleeding as well - not as bad. "No... more darkness... light... please..." She turns. "Iceman... help me..." she whispers. "My... powers... gone..."
Vampires dealt with, Iceman rushes for Storm's side. He grabs the emergency care kit off his back, having grabbed it along with the glowsticks when Storm called for help. He's no medic but he's had the basic training and spent enough time around Hank to pick up tricks. He shoots a look at the homeless guy and then shoves the first aid supplies at him. "Stop the bleeding, I'll get us out of here. Just hold on tight," he says. There's an unspoken warning that if anything worse happens to Storm, he'll be hurting the guy. He forms up as comfortable an ice slide he can under the three of them, directing them out and towards the surface. Along the way, he taps the com in his ear. "Iceman to HQ. Get the infirmary ready now. Storm's been injured. Really bad and I'm getting her back as quick as possible. Anyone wants to send a teleporter to speed this up, that'd be great. And someone make sure Wolverine knows."
The bandages on the neck wound soak up the blood as it oozes out at a steady stream, but no amount of pressure seems to stop the flow of blood, coagulant foams just seem to plug the hole for a moment before dissolving, or not doing their job, the smaller wounds if a bandage spray is used, the bandage spray just splits open along the wounds, the woman leaving small droplets of blood freezing on the ice platform. Soon help is garnered and the infirmary is bustling as people try to stop the bleeding and are unable, those with heafty medical knowledge speak "I don't know why, but nothing we do will stop the bleeding.. we started an infusion.. but that's just staving off the inevtable.. if we don't get the bleeding to stop..." they trail off into silence..
The transient-looking fellow with the knives snaps his eyes up to Bobby at the veiled threat, staring challangingly.. but he must see something there, because his expression shifts in one moment to another, softening to understanding. He nods, and starts efficiently to taking out medical supplies and putting pressure on the worst wounds on her torso-- it's more difficult with her neck, but he does what he can while they're all transported towards the surface. "Hang in there, silver." he mutters. "We're getting you out of here." though weather he is whisked off to the X-men headquarters or if Bobby dumps him as soon as he gets X-backup, Marc soon realizes one particular wound just isn't cooperating.. he insists gravely, "It's an eleder vampire's bite.. traditional medicine may not be enough."
Ororo Munroe just whimpers. "It's... a curse... a trap... laid for me... Dracula's... lieutenant Ligeia always hated me... envied me... anyway... laid a blood... curse on me... powers gone... bleeding... so much blood, darkness, pain..." She rambles off... then stiffens. "Oh!" She reaches into a pocket... and pulls out a card. "Was gonna... call... him... soon... about... magic... maybe... he can help." She hands Iceman a card with blood-stained fingers.
Ororo Munroe murmurs, "Bobby.... take that guy home... leave him alone. He... saved my life... I... don't want... that taken... from him...." She then closes her eyes and passes out, constant transfusions keeping her full of blood.