October 2008

A new program for the students, the New Mutants was instituted, with their first activity being a camping trip supervised by Garrison Kane and Cain Marko. The trip turned serious when the group encountered and dealt with a landslide that had blocked off a town. Callie was unable to attend, coming down with the chicken pox, and new arrival Meggan Szardos arrived slightly too late to join in. Another new arrival, in the form of Medusa and Blackagar's son, the Crown Prince Ahura Boltagon. Marie-Ange confessed to losing her precog when a slip on the journals was caught by Amanda.

Laurie and Kyle ran into trouble at the museum, finding themselves the target of Karl Lykos, a disgraced doctor whose mutant power required him to feed off the energy of others. The incident itself was eclipsed by a journal thread in which the tension between the two young X-Men erupted into open hostility, with Laurie accusing Kyle of not being able to control himself due to his feral nature. The thread potentially cost her not only her friendship with Kyle, but also with Yvette, with whom things had been strained since the Kosovo incident.

Everything was overshadowed, however, by the arrival of Apocalypse in New York. He laid claim to the island of Manhattan as a mutant homeland, resulting in the deaths of thousands and trapping various individuals in the city, including most of the students. A joint response from the X-Men, X-Force and Red X was formed, prompted by a request for aid from SHIELD. Various casualties were accrued, including the revelation of Jean-Phillipe's identity as a mole of Magneto, Doug's body and the discovery that Alison Blaire was behind the mask of War. Apocalypse and his Horsemen were ultimately defeated, but the devastation to the city was such that X-Force were unable to return to the brownstone and moved into the mansion for the intervening period.

A couple of days later, a celebration was held at Harry's Hideaway, with Johnny Devil and the Screaming Demons playing a gig. One face was missing, however, as a now-powerless and old Cain left the mansion quietly to try and find a place for himself.

Timeline

Oct 1 - Doug posts a link about hacking. Kevin is looking for a missing sculpture. Amanda emails Jane to make sure she's okay. Forge and Nathan discuss his issues with returning to the X-Men after X-Men Mission: Keep The Faith. Catseye talks Laurie into feeding her.

Oct 2 - Adrienne is gleeful about the Red Sox victory and has a conversation with Marie-Ange about precognition; Amanda emails Marie-Ange after catching a slip concerning the other girl's loss of precog and Marie-Ange confesses it's been gone since the previous winter. Wanda returns from Russia and finds herself hosting a party. Sam gives Catseye an interesting History homework assignment. Catseye talks to Forge about his fear and gives him some good advice.

Oct 3 - Jubilee wakes up hungover from the spontaneous party at Wanda's the night before.

Oct 4 - Remy and Betsy meet in Paris and Betsy tries to convince him to come back to New York, without success.

Oct 5 - Betsy announces her pending return to New York, mentioning in passing that Alison is busy recording a new album. Emma announces Frost Enterprises is doing fine despite the financial crash due to her brilliance. Adrienne has to share her company box with a bunch of Cosmo Girl models and is much the worse for wear, especially when the Red Sox lose.

Oct 6 Jubilee helps Amanda with some of the day-to-day intel work at Snow Valley. Jane polls for suggestions for a Q surname. Jennie gets the Portal Danger Room scenario. Adrienne goes to see Nathan about mental shielding.

Oct 7 - Jubilee picks up Betsy from the airport and they talk about Jubilee's chosen path in life; Jubilee tries her hand at testing the mansion's security and winds up talking with Forge about trusting your teammates. Jennie and Bishop have a drink together.

Oct 8 - Bishop and Jubilee work on her stealth and she tells him a little of her past at the school. Jubilee discovers Zero Punctuation. Shiro talks about the 2008 Nobel Prize winners in his own particular way. Amanda wishes Remy a happy birthday.

Oct 9 - Jubilee learns the basics of computer hacking from Doug.

Oct 10 - Mark and Jubilee go on an investigation run and have a narrow escape. Marie and Amanda share beer and pizza and avoid discussing various things.

Oct 11 - Zanne loses her job due to the financial crisis. While out practicing his flying squirrel trick, Angelo comes across Nathan talking to one of MacInnis' old Mistra contacts about Taygetos.

Oct 12 - Bishop and Amanda spar - carefully on Bishop's part, at least. Yvette talks to Jay about Laurie and Kosovo.

Oct 13 - Amanda posts about how quiet things are which spawns the usual 'don't jinx it!' response from Clarice.

Oct 14 - Clarice complains about the mid-semester college slump. Meggan returns to the school, with Amanda picking her up at the airport. Jennie announces a new show for her dance class. Adrienne asks for a favour from the superstrong.

Oct 15 - Laurie is random, which results in basketball with Jay. Mark is depressed about Madonna's divorce.

Oct 16 - Here Comes Tomorrow: Yvette remarks on the possible new student and on an email from the Professor detailing a new student group called the New Mutants and a camping trip the next weekend; Karolina and Nori decline the 'invitation'. Catseye is gleeful about the secret of the new student and proposes a guessing game.

Oct 17 - Callie gets chicken pox and is confined to the infirmary. Meggan announces her return. Here Comes Tomorrow: Garrison announces the New Mutants camping trip and reminds Karolina and Nori the trip is mandatory; arriving at the campsite, the girls find themselves having to work together to put up their tents. Scott runs Marie through her paces in the Danger Room and asks for her help in training the younger X-Men.

Oct 18 - First Do No Harm: Kyle and Laurie go to the museum in New York and attract the attention of a jewel thief/mutant; Lykos attacks the pair and feeds off Laurie, resulting in his transformation into a dinosaur man; Kyle's emergency beacon goes off and a team is scrambled; during the fight, Laurie uses her powers on Kyle, convinced he is trying to kill Lykos; the cavalry arrives and Lykos escapes; back at the mansion, Laurie and Kyle have an enormous fight on the journals and she accuses him of not having control of his feral nature, going so far as to email Scott; Doug gets Clarice to teleport him to the mansion and drags Laurie out to the dojo to cool down; Monet is bored by the whole thing; Laurie goes home to avoid the fallout of the fight, and Gail sends her back with some pointed words about her behaviour and attitude; Kyle is dragged off the computer by Julio and lectured by Farouk. After his talk with Farouk, Kyle gets a very different kind of stress aid from Jan. Here Comes Tomorrow: The girls have to cooperate to build a bridge and Garrison reflects on the conversation with Charles that resulted in the formation of the group. Julio mentions a new powers application and Haller arranges for Betsy to help him with it.

Oct 19 - Betsy trains Julio in his powers-related 'sonar'. Here Comes Tomorrow: On the way home, the group encounters a landslide and helps clear it to provide access to a small mountain town. Crystal announces the birth of Medusa's son, born the previous day.

Oct 20 - Garrison asks Adrienne out for drinks to gloat about the Red Sox playoff defeat. Yvette posts about the weekend. Doug points out a World of Warcraft-related cartoon to Forge.

Oct 21 - Scott has a stern talk to Laurie about what she said to Kyle. Yvette emails Kyle to check on him. Cain points out to Inez Temple| Inez the need for the New Mutants to work as a complete team. Angel catches up on the journals and goes to yell at Laurie.

Oct 22 -

Oct 23 - Doug has an early morning call on Saturday and so rearranges his and Marie-Ange's date night to Thursday instead of Friday; during their date, he asks Marie-Ange about her broken precog and why she didn't tell him. Crystal announces she has photos of her nephew to show those interested. Yvette visits Callie in the infirmary and they talk about Karolina.

Oct 24 - Laurie announces her absence for the weekend. Laurie emails Kyle and gets an automated response, and Yvette, who replies coolly. Day Zero: Cain announces another New Mutants trip, this time to New York over night for emergency relief training; Karolina refuses to go and gets grounded and later sneaks out the flies to New York to meet with friends. Tabitha emails Scott about vacation time.

Oct 25 - Doug complains about his early morning call. Day Zero: Something impacts on Madison Square Garden, throwing New York into chaos; Haller is on the phone to Betsy at the time and she is cut off; the New Mutants are stranded alone as Jono can't get back to the hotel; the Snow Valley crew reacts and tries to gather information; Laurie and her father decide to head to the mansion; Amanda and Angelo are jogging in Tomkin Square Park when Amanda's powers go haywire and Angelo and Sarah have to get her out of New York; Apocalypse announces he is claiming Manhattan as a mutant homeland and al humans have 24 hours to leave; Angelo goes to get his mother; Wanda and Bishop are already at the mansion and try to find out what's happened to the rest of the team; Scott tries to keep the mansion residents calm; Scott puts the team on stand-by; Amanda finds herself in the medlab and posts to announce her and Sarah's presence; Silver becomes a refuge with Mark running things; War and Famine take down military jets sent against the Citadel and Betsy gets caught in the crossfire; Kurt decides to go and look for Meggan; Karolina makes it to an evacuation centre; Death destroys the George Washington Bridge, despite Jennie's efforts to stop her; Zach and Laurie have to use their powers to calm the crowd; Charles is in Cerebro at the time and goes into psychic shock at the sudden deaths of thousands; Jean announces Charles is in a coma; Remy returns to the States and makes a deal with David Langstrom to take down Apocalypse in return for him calling off the CIA on Remy's trail; Forge and Wanda get the news of Jennie's apparent death on the bridge; Forge makes the announcement about Jennie and Marius and Manuel refuse to believe she's dead; Jubilee finds Doug in the Snow Valley offices and they compare notes; Kyle asks for something to keep him busy; Manuel goes to talk to Amanda about things and calm down; Marie-Ange and Jean-Phillipe run into Caliban on the way to Silver and Marie-Ange is taken; Terry mentions that parents and the media have been calling and asks for help dealing with them; Jay asks what he can do; Angel's father Bart turns up at the mansion, having managed to escape and is met by Kyle; Callie is worried about her classmates; Jan makes cookies; Jono is evacuated to the Bronx and lets the staff know he doesn't know what's happened with the girls.

Oct 26 - Day Zero: Jean-Phillipe makes it to Silver and raises the alarm about Marie-Ange and he and Pete go to rescue her; Remy finds Jubilee and Doug in the office and they are alerted to Pestilence/Ignatova's presence in the NYSE by Emma who starts using minor Hellfire members to enact a plan; Laurie and her father take refuge in an apartment and try to plan what to do next; Nick Fury and Val Cooper come to the mansion to ask the help of the X-Men and explain things are much worse than they seem; Pete defeats Caliban and Jean-Phillipe gets Marie-Ange out, revealing his secret in order to bring her to her senses; Apocalypse offers Pete Caliban's place and he accepts; Scott announces the plan on the team comms; Fury approaches Shiro with Plan C - nuking Manhattan if necessary; the New Mutants stock up on supplies and try to figure out what to do next; Sarah and Amanda ask Callisto to come with them to the tunnels and Amanda and Angelo talk about getting his mother safe and what is to come; Crystal feeds Nathan and they talk about what's happened; Jan reminds people to eat; Forge drafts Julio to help in the tunnels; Catseye and Yvette act as scouts; the New Mutants decide to spend the night at the firehouse; Jan makes sure Callie eats and they talk about the missing students, Cain asks Crystal to join the team attacking the Citadel; she and Forge both have news to exchange about the mission; Jean-Phillipe and Marie-Ange arrive back at Silver and Mark reacts badly to the news that Jean-Phillipe has been working for Magneto; Remy leaves word for Sofia at one of the XF drop points; attacked by looters, Zach shoots one, prompting Laurie to leave him and strike out on her own; Angel and Yvette discuss the situation during a night spent in the fire station.

Oct 27 - Day Zero: Emma realises she can't defeat Pestilence through her victims; Team Delta - Sam, Dani, Marius, Kurt, Tabitha and Jane perform their search and rescue; Team Foxtrot - Garrison, Morgan, Wanda and Bishop meet up with Fred Duncan and Sofia to provide support to those law enforcement and emergency services personnel who remained; Team Charlie - Jan, Amanda, Forge, Sarah, Julio and Callisto find the tunnels aren't the same as they used to be; Team Beta - Alex, Terry, Shiro, Cain, Crystal and Marie launch their attack on the Citadel; Team Alpha - Scott, Kyle, Zanne, Adrienne go after the neutron bomb SHIELD was using as a failsafe and 'lost'; Team Echo - Clarice, Nathan, Jay, Ororo, Angelo, Monet and Jean encounter War and Apocalypse in Central Park and have to walk away to avoid being beaten into the ground and cutting off communications; Apocalypse invites any mutants to come to Manhattan and his 'mutant homeland'; in the tunnels, Callisto and Amanda talk about the disconnection both of them are feeling with the changes to their city; Garrison and Sofia fight through a mob attempting to get into the Pershing Armoury while Wanda, Bishop and Morgan do the same from the other side; Karolina and a group of other mutants are displaced from their shelter and try to escape New York before Karolina finally has enough and flies home; Emma comes to Doug with a plan and shuts down all his distractions in order to make him a match for Pestilence; Betsy, blinded by the explosion, wanders New York and her own memories; Farouk uses Cerebro to pass on information among the various teams; Duncan and Team Foxtrot decides to move on with the National Guard and law enforcement agents to try and shake Apocalypse's hold on New York from the south, including what seems to be some kind of cult controlling humans; Team Alpha holes up for the night, unable to search for the bomb in the dark; Bravo battles Death, and with the appearance of Jennie, manages to almost take her down, revealing her identity as Alison Blaire; Laurie encounters Post and her father reappears to save her, only to be gravely injured; in the tunnels, Team Charlie discovers they're not alone as they encounter Ignatova's meat spores and have to flee for their lives; at Silver, Mark and Marie-Ange talk and she reveals her precognition has come back under the pressure of Caliban's psychic manipulations; Mark confronts Jean-Phillipe about his betrayal and they wind up having sex; Karolina makes it back to the mansion and is met by Haller and Callie.

Oct 28 - Day Zero: Foxtrot and the human resistance presses forward despite resistance from Apocalypse's supporters; the search and rescue team is attacked by Famine whilst evacuating people, with Famine's arm being broken in the ensuing fight; Marie-Ange has a vision of an attack on Silver and warns everyone; Silver comes under seige from David Angar and friends, and Mark kills one of his supporters during the fight; the New Mutants run into an injured Famine, who nearly takes them all out before they drop an electrified billboard on her and run; with Doug acting as their Trojan Horse, Emma, Remy and Jubilee attack the NYSE and Pestilence/Ignatova and barely manage to break her hold on things before she flees back into the digital ether; Foxtrot finds themselves up against an insane religious man - Sebastian Madrias - and his cult of Apocalypse worshippers and Morgan kills him to end the fight; Karolina reflects on how quiet things are; Team Charlie in the sewers finds themselves in a running battle with meatspores all the way to the power station; Forge and Amanda realise turning off the power will effect Post's connection with the city as well, and do so despite the risk to Amanda herself; Yvette and Angel, taking point for the New Mutants, stumble on Marius and Kurt and after a moment of reassuring themselves that they are the X-Men, agree to go with them to the Citadel; Team Alpha discovers Agent Zero - a bomb-collared Sabretooth - and while Zanne and Adrienne try to disarm the neutron bomb, Sabretooth, Laurie, Zach, Scott and Kyle battle War; War is defeated, but Sabretooth manages to escape in the confusion; Team Charlie battles an enraged Post in Times Square, with Amanda using the trick she learned in London to get the jump on him and allow Sarah to kill him; Team Echo in Central Park take to a jeep to battle Apocalypse's supporters; Team Bravo take on the Citadel, with Nathan assisting, and Cain gives his power to Marie to achieve their goal, despite the fact it leaves him powerless and old; Death, Pete and Betsy battle each other in the Citadel, with Pete and Betsy resorting to recalling the assassination of Alphonso de la Rocha to shock Alison out of her mind controlled state; at the end, Apocalypse finds himself facing a mixed team of X-Men, X-Force, New Mutants and others and is defeated before Garrison arrests him and hands him over to SHIELD; Amanda posts about X-Force being homeless and having to stay at the mansion; Meggan, Kurt and Amanda have a family meal; Garrison announces Apocalypse's fate; Pete tries to regroup mentally; Haller announces Charles is out of his coma, although weak; Sofia asks about official relocation addresses; Forge complains about the sewers and mentions Jennie's non-death; Nori has a meltdown, reluctantly, on Julio; Betsy is brought back on the Blackbird and Haller takes care of her; Clarice's father arrives and is not happy with the situation.

Oct 29 - Emma emails Manuel wanting to talk to him once she's done sleeping and Adrienne, suggesting she ask for a medal. A tense discussion breaks out on Garrison's post to x_journal regarding Apocalypse's survival. Adrienne demands something expensive and shiny as compensation for her trauma, especially with staff still missing from her label and suggests a Wii tournament. Kyle announces the Sabretooth situation on x_team. Mark tries to put things back in perspective. Terry announces she is returning to Ireland and Crystal decides to go with her. Kyle makes BBQ. Jennie, in the infirmary, asks for her pillow. Sarah asks for the loan of old clothes as her mutation is out of control. Meggan announces her safe (and sleepy) presence. Nathan tells the Elpis staff the office is closed until further notice so they can recuperate; Leo's sister makes contact. Clarice doesn't have to have her homework done, but already did it. Angel emails Karolina to let her know she's glad the other girl is safe. Alex goes to Berkeley to tell Lorna in person about Alison, who is recovering at Muir. Wanda surfaces to eat. Doug complains about the loss of his best laptop. Terry emails Zanne about taking Jennie to Ireland once she's stable. Forge reveals Morgan's mercenary status on the journals and she is livid at the breach of security promised by Charles; Forge refuses to admit wrongdoing; Morgan lets Garrison, Nathan and Adrienne what's going on and Garrison manages to convince her not to go riding off on her motorbike in a rage. Amanda and Angelo talk about near-death experiences and Miguel Torres. Jay comforts an upset Terry with toasted cheese and hugs.

Oct 30 - Bishop asks for some Maker's Mark as his stash is back in New York. Sam announces his recovery from Famine and asks if anyone wants to overlook the damage with him. A thoughtful Laurie emails Yvette and Scott, wanting to talk. Wanda asks Forge for help making Jennie a birthday cake and later apologises for the mess; Wanda delivers Jennie's cake and she is pleased. Marius and Jennie talk about things. Manuel visits Jennie and things are odd at first. Jay causes an uproar asking about the level of force used to take Apocalypse down. Scott visits Jennie and finds her blaming herself for not doing enough on the bridge. Cain, powerless and his chronological age now, leaves the mansion, leaving a series of notes with Haller. Angelo is worried about Nathan and emails Domino. Pride Goeth: Farouk gets an email asking him to meet someone known as "His Excellency". Doug and Marie-Ange talk about the strangeness he's been exhibiting lately and then Marie-Ange goes to Emma for answers. Garrison announces a band night at Harry's, with Johnny Devil and the Screaming Demons playing; various mansion dwellers and visitors attend, in various moods and stages of recovery; Remy is pleased to be back and Wanda gives him his birthday present; Jay and Shiro talk about their one night stand and manage to eventually clear the air; Garrison gives Adrienne a medal as requested; Jubilee pesters a cranky and drunk Nathan; Zanne gets to walk Nate home; Scott and Jean reflect on how the team has changed; Garrison gives Sofia a gift from himself and Fred Duncan and things are awkward until a happydrunk Amanda joins them; back home, Amanda wakes up Sarah, sleeping on the couch, and tells her about why Remy left; Doug manages to come out, but gets overwhelmed. Sarah and Callisto, back at the mansion during the party, talk for the first time since Callisto's arrival at the school.

Oct 31 - Kyle gets the letter from Cain giving him the groundskeeping job and he's not pleased. Crystal announces a Halloween party in the ballroom. Meggan is excited about Halloween and a new powers trick - levitating. Nathan eventually winds up talking to Wanda about Alison and how he's feeling. Emma meets with Manuel and lets him know he has made Doug her White Knight and Manuel has been made White Bishop, a move he is not happy with.

Plots

Here Comes Tomorrow

First Do No Harm

Day Zero

External Links

October 2008