To Raise a Tempest: Ch 3

Disclaimer in Ch 1

Phoenix's eyes widened as she looked through the Coda's eyes, Hank
switching to a conversational link only as he analyzed the incoming
images from Remy's digicam.

"They're *inside* the main complex, aren't they?" she whispered to
Hank, feeling a sense of trepidation about the place the clone,
Madelyne Pryor, must have been created, and where her current body
might have come from...

"I believe they are, my dear," he said softly, shelving his own
doubts about  Xavier for the moment as the researcher in him became
fascinated with the  possibilities, <Don't go much further, mon
braves, Phoenix and I will join you momentarily...because if what
Creed described holds true, you've descended  into the first ring
of the Inferno!>

[Understood, Hank,] she replied, her Sight-gift flashing a warning
as grabbed the focusing hilt Emma and Joseph had designed to
facilitate her psi-blade,  giving it physical coherence as well as
retaining the psychic properties it was already known for, [Though
I'd suggest you both get here sooner, rather than later....]

Cable reached for his own weaponry as Remy taunted her, <Remy don'
hear nothin' but machinery hummin' away, chere...>

The Coda took a defensive stance, [I sense thoughts... very
primal...random, chaotic...and extremely hostile!]

Cable nodded, [As do I...]

A moment later, a barrage of flechettes bombarded the trio as
Psykeye rapidly  parried as many as she could, [Gambit! Get. Down.]

They impacted his body armor, leaving ding's in the matte black
surface and  skittered off the ultra-tech plate the Coda and Cable
both wore, surprising  him as he momentarily gave up his bravado
and ducked behind them, grumbling to himself as he charged up a
fistful of cards and let them fly in the direction of their unseen
assailant...

<whatsamatter, chere?> he muttered, <cantcha read it's mind... or
you jus'  savin' that trick fo you friends?>

She ignored Remy for the moment, concentrating on deflecting the
continual barrage with her psiblade, Cable laying down strafing
fire as they held off the damage as best the could, [Hank, these
projectiles look familiar... I can't lock onto any psi-sig...]

[She's right, McCoy,] Cable added, [Our assailant exhibits no
discernable sentient thought patterns. Only raw emotions!]

Phoenix's eyes widened as she saw the whirling figure storm her
friends'  position, <That's odd... that's Riptide.. one of the
Marauders! I *know*  he's at the very least, as cold-blooded as
Creed...and at the last report, very, very *dead*!!>

Hank nodded, quickly using the digicam input to verify that
identity, <Oh, my stars an' garters...>

Phoenix prepared to teleport the pair of them, sending a brief
thought to  the Coda, <I'm on my way... Keep him occupied.. My
forcefields should protect all of us...>

Liz shot back, [The day I need to hide behind a forcefield to take
down a  nuisance like this...]

Cable continued laying down strafing fire with his PPG pistols as
the telepath  jumped over the living whirlwind of flechettes,
though Gambit's cards had little effect on their foe, he pulled his
collapsible staff and began spinning it in  such a way that he was
less a target, turning some of the missiles back on their creator.

[..'preciate the thought, Redd,] she replied, [My concern stems not
from Riptide's physical assault, but the fact that his mind is a
total blank slate to mine and Cable's telepathic probes!]

Remy charged his staff, ducking another round of the flechettes
that were turning the walls into pincushions, <You sayin' dat th'
lights are on, but nobody home, neh? Then we go on three, chere...
See if a little kinetic chargin' an' y'all's psiblade'll be able t'
make any impression on th' homme?>

An energy siphon chinked open on the end of Remy's staff as the
merc drove the cloned killer between the Cajun and the Coda,
watching as the dull ruby glow of Remy's kenotic charge and the
glowing violet blade connected with their foe's hyperkinetic
form... a scream of animalistic agony was torn from Riptide's 
throat as his body was unable to handle the systemshock of his
synapses being shredded from the inside and the neural overload of
Gambit's "painstick"...

<nice little gadget ol' Forge installed between hors d'oeurves an'
th' entree at th' open house last month...> the thief muttered to
himself, <sure put a lil' ol' spark in les bijou de mon ami
noveau...>

And suddenly the barrage stopped as the raw form of a pale haired
man lay still on the cold steel deckplates, various plasma burns
and concussive damage from Remy's cards was evident as Cable moved
closer to the fallen adversary, [Gambit? Psykeye? I've got him
covered...]

The telepath scanned the unconscious clone's mind, shaking her
head, [No, I can't sense anything here... You didn't..?]

<Kill him? 'Course not! What d'ya take me fer, chere?> he groused
defensively,  <We don' have time t'be gentle, an' since this
Riptide buffoon is here, he may have more o' 'is Marauder buddies
lurkin' around, non?>

Cable shook his head, [Nothing subtle about this boy... this
doesn't make any since, though. Colossus killed Riptide  when the
marauders massacred the Morlocks, and even stranger: why can't mine
or Psykeye's telepathy pick up anything from him?]

Liz tuned her cybernetic eyes down to a more microscopic level,
[Look at this, Cable, aside from plasma burns and concussive damage
from Gambit's cards, he's  got rashes everywhere... like his skin
were flaking apart!]

The golden glow of cosmic flame brightened the area as Hank and
Phoenix appeared nearby, <Is everything alright? We can see you
took care of this malaised Marauder, my friends...>

Remy grinned, "Guessed right, Messeur le Bete, never mind your
pretty self, petite, but y'll be gettin' t'th' ball a bit late,
non?"

[Or maybe not, LeBeau,] Cable reminded them as they were greeted by
facsimiles of several other dead mutant adversaries.

Liz rolled her violet eyes as Phoenix snapped a forcefield around
them, [Time to show these sideshow freaks how a Coda dances...]

<Indeed...> she replied, <I am not in the mood to exchange
pleasantries with an  incarnation of the Brotherhood of Evil
Mutants, incarnation...what ever the hell this one was....>

Cable counted Deadpool, Phantazia, Pyro, Blob and the Toad amongst
this batch,  his combat computer loading known weaknesses of each
foe into his conscious mind and making it accessible to each of his
cohorts via the mindlink...his skill as a squad leader took over,
[Phoenix, take down Pyro's napalm unit, he's only a  pyrokinetic.
LeBeau, Toad's all yours. Beast... take Phantazia down hard and
fast, before she gets her mental hooks in you. I'll take
Deadpool...]

Before he could finish his run stratagem, Phoenix clutched her head
as Psykeye hit all their foes with a simultaneous psycho-blast. He
felt the pain resonate through his own mind and reflexively snapped
his shields in place as Phoenix slumped against Hank's shoulder...

The effects were much worse for the half-formed minds of her foes,
the neurochemistry burning out what ever cerebral function there
had been--the same results as the combined effects of a major
stroke and the worst grand mal seizures Hank'd ever seen--and the
telepath kept it up until the clones no longer twitched.

She was aware of the gaping gazes her friends leveled at her,
"Well, as Gambit has already noted, we have no time to be gentle,
and I am not in the mood to exchange pleasantries, either..."

Hank nodded, he knelt to examine the bodies, starting with
Riptide... He pulled  out what could best be described as a
tricorder, and began taking readings from the clone, while Cable
surveyed the damage to the surrounding area, "This sortie caused
extensive damage to some of the equipment..."

Liz nodded using turning her extrasensory perception to the damaged
areas, [I  agree... The combined effects appear to be worse than we
originally thought, Cable.]

Phoenix shook of the dull headache throbbing in her temples and
picked up one of the flechettes, examining it carefully, before
showing it to Hank, "Odd... these projectiles are actually
organic... Perhaps some sort of hardened resin secreted through his
skin?"

The furry scientist took the object from her and ran the tricorder
over it before announcing his opinion, "A most astute observation,
my fiery friend, and I have to agree with you... Mind sweeping up
these little beauties? I should like to further analyze
them...unless, of course, the should come in handy for any further
unanticipated encounters."

The redhead stifled a chuckle at Hanks loquaciousness, but she
could see the  practicality of having razor-sharp missiles to
'kinetically fling at people...

Liz spoke up, [Remy, get over here... I think I found something
that will take us beyond this engine room. We need your particular
talents to mesh with Cable's to crack this one!]

The feisty Cajun sobered up, knowing that if the ESPer couldn't
figure it out, and she wanted him to link up with the cyborg, then
they were in for a doozy. He knelt beside the merc, and let him
into the public mind, <Ho'kay, Remy need your computer link, an'
dat laser torch in you finger.. An' accordin' t' Creed, what
Sinny-boy had on th' first level is but th' icin' on th' cake, mes
amis! It goin' t'get worse th' deeper we go...>

Liz looked at the telekinetic, [Link with me, Redd, I want need to
be able to  trigger a reflexive forcefield the moment I get a hint
of danger...Let's see  what happens if they're able to override the
locking sequence...]

Beast and the ladies took up defensable positions on the other side
of the door, their backs against the walls in anticipation of any
hostiles or unpleasantries: Beast attaching himself to the ceiling,
Phoenix ready to contain anything with her forcefields, and
Psykeye's senses tuned for any other contingencies, her  psiblade
hilt in hand...

Remy's skills as a thief merged with Cable's decades of mercenary
work to override the complex piece of equipment, as Hank watched
the wall begin to ripple.

"My intrepid burglars, it is readily apparent that your larcenous
endeavours are paying off," he commented, examining the readings he
was getting, "Ladies, you might wish to become less adjacent to
that particular partition...."

Liz grinned at their stupefied expressions, [In so many words,
Redd, step away from the wall...it's melting. Nice work, lads.]

Remy puffed out his chest a bit, giving Cable the urge to wipe the
cocky, smug grin off the Cajun's face, "ah... nice t'know that I
still got th' touch..."

Phoenix stared at the vista that opened up before them, "I don't
believe it..."

Her shock was shared by both Remy and Cable, whom was nearly
unfazable by ultra- tech. Beast and Liz stared for a moment, too.