Science's Pursuit

[doc-richards.livejournal.com]

Reed Richards paces through his laboratory on the upper floors of the Baxter Building - stopping at each experiment to make sure they are operating within appropriate parameters, checking the readouts to interpret results, adjusting the antimatter containment fields.

The quiet hum of the machinery filling the room is interrupted by the klaxon of the building's security alarms. Before he can even stretch to the security monitors, a section of the roof caves in.

An outstretched limb grabs a blaster pistol kept nearby in the event of attack, as he peers into the cloud of dust.

"We prefer our visitors to register at the front desk.."

Comments

[wwii-hero.livejournal.com]

The quinjet slows in front of the tower.

"Let's move," Patriot says grimly, staring at the gaping hole two stories from the top floor. "Crusader, carry me in. Morph, you grab any non-fliers. Thor, keep an eye on the outside."

[rogue-starsr.livejournal.com]

Sarah hovers near the quinjet so she can grab Patriot, a little awkward with only one good arm, but she manages.

"On it, not sure how many of the security systems they have here that they do in my world, so best be careful until we hear from someone. This place is a fortress in my time."

[proteus-maximus.livejournal.com]

Morph's a little taken aback by the structural damage, but in short order, he's taken the form of a ramp connecting the Quinjet to the hole.

"Everybody off! Women and children first."

[wwii-hero.livejournal.com]

"If you're off first, who'll get the others off?" Patriot asks him with a wink, grabbing hold of Sarah. He turns to her.

"I'm one of their allies. I've got clearance," he assures her.

[house-of-mystiq.livejournal.com]

"I can get them off." Mystique winks. "But we should save that for later and just get out of the QuinJet for now."

She slides down Morph's ramp. There's already a lot of smoke in here, so she lights a fresh cigarette. It won't make any difference in this air.

[rogue-starsr.livejournal.com]

Sarah sets Patriot down inside, and then goes stalking into the buidling, shield bracing her arm, held up as much as she can comfortably manage, hammer at the ready in her other hand.

[spidey2099.livejournal.com]

"Shockin' hell... winkers."

Spidey would have stayed back aboard the jet and kept working on cracking the code of the Doombot head, but this is Reed Richards. One of the few pioneers of the Heroic Age still revered in 2099, at least in scientific circles. He can't not meet this guy.

[hulksmashed.livejournal.com]

Out of nowhere... a giant green fist slams into Crusader.

As if sensing her weakness.

[rogue-starsr.livejournal.com]

Almost anyone else in their little band would probably be dead from that... well, except Morph, and he'd be a mile of spaghetti.

Sarah goes through three of the reinforced walls, and puts a teenage-girl shaped dent in a blast door before falling forward, spitting blood and trying to regain something of her senses.

[wwii-hero.livejournal.com]

Patriot rolls out of the way, drawing his guns. Set to maximum power, his blasters can usually at least sting his target a little, and better to sting than do nothing at all.

"Maestro!" he calls. "I should have known."

[proteus-maximus.livejournal.com]

"Maestro?! My world's Hulk told me about this guy, but.. isn't he supposed to be a future version of the Hulk, and not appearing in the present?"

[house-of-mystiq.livejournal.com]

"How many Prime Ministers can Australia need!"

She's flattened against the QuinJet, her skin shifted to match the craft's coloration. If she tries to charge this thing head on, she'll end up nothing more than a blue smear and an unfortunate memory in the minds of her grandchildren.

[spidey2099.livejournal.com]

Sadly, neither Spider-Man nor Dazzler have that kind of camouflage, and they both are suddenly flying backwards, crashing THROUGH the hull of the Quinjet.

[hulksmashed.livejournal.com]

The Maestro looms, his fist wrapped securely around the throat of a battered Reed Richards.

"Leave or die. Your choice."

[rogue-starsr.livejournal.com]

Sarah is still working on getting back to her feet - this thing somehow hits even harder than the Hulk - and caught her by surprise. But she can't let it kill Reed... she can't let it kill her teammates... she can't... she can't.

And in the end, she can't. Sarah slumps back forward onto the floor after a few staggered steps.

[proteus-maximus.livejournal.com]

This isn't good. In no way, shape, form, or fashion is this good.

Morph flows into the destroyed laboratory, puffing up in muscular form to match the Maestro's physique.

"Hold on a second, there, Mr. Maestro. We stretchy guys have to stick together, and I want answers!"

[hulksmashed.livejournal.com]

"You don't get any."

The punch that slams square into Morph's face is surprisingly fast, and harder than any punch the mindless brute they fought before could muster.

[proteus-maximus.livejournal.com]

The punch meets with a mostly liquid form - Morph's head effectively splattering with the blow.

Which isn't to say he doesn't have a spare..

"Yeah, yeah. Hulk Smash. Seen it! What's cramping your jolly, green giant?" says the newly formed face, sliding into place atop his shoulders.

[hulksmashed.livejournal.com]

"You, shifter."

His other hand has drawn Richards into a small ball, and compressing his form entirely, sheer strength keeping him from expanding.

"Who the hell are you?"

[proteus-maximus.livejournal.com]

"Name's Morph. I'm new around these parts, pilgrim.." here, he adopts Western garb.. ".. and I don't take kindly to folks waddin' other folks up into a ball. So if'n you'd just tell us what you're after, maybe we can find a better way to do it."

He shifts to his normal uniform again. "Of course, I'm a little fuzzy on just how you came to be here. The Hulk kinda went blooie out West - what gives?"

[hulksmashed.livejournal.com]

"I took his power, and brought it back where it belongs."

A fist beats on his own chest once.

"I'll thank you for killing the brute, but I don't need anyone's help, and I don't need anyone's permission. If you know what's best for you, run back to the rest of your mutant-hating buddies and tell them to hide. Their control is not long for this world."

To punctuate that, a foot kicks upwards, to punt the shifter away.

[proteus-maximus.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, but.."

Morph's body goes flying out the hole in the building in a parabolic arc.

[wwii-hero.livejournal.com]

"Dammit. That's where the gamma radiation went!" Barnes continues blasting, even though he knows the energy beams shouldn't do anything more than tickle at this point.

[hulksmashed.livejournal.com]

Maestro's fist slams into a wall, then opens. Bringing it forward, he throws a giant chunk of infrastructure toward the Patriot and the rest of the fools - particularly that Quinjet, too.

"I'd stay to make sure you were dead, but it'll be moot soon enough. I'll settle for permanent paralysis."

[thor-odinsson.livejournal.com]

An enchanted hammer flies out to meet the debris. Thor was about to join the fight, but protecting those within takes priority, and he trusts Patriot to be able to handle himself.
Enough shrapnel still hits the quinjet that Thor is forced to fly out to help hold up the jet and keep it in place until the pilots can regain control, leaving him out of the Maestro's path of escape, to his annoyance.

[house-of-mystiq.livejournal.com]

Raven rolls away from the damaged Quinjet, flattening to a wall. The Joyless Green Giant already killed Doom, and probably T'Challa, too.

Reed Richards looks like he can take some damage. She pulls a grenade out of her chest and throws it towards the Maestro's face.

[hulksmashed.livejournal.com]

The Maestro catches that grenade.

In his MOUTH.

Swallows it, then lets out a little burst of flame in a belch.

"Not even close."

Then, the Green Goliath turns to leave these fools in their collapsing bulding...

[house-of-mystiq.livejournal.com]

"Stop showing off."

Much as she hates to admit it, she's impressed.

She's also going to be crushed into a blue smear if they don't get out of this building. The fliers should be fine. James will survive anything. That still leaves her, Nocturne, Dazzler and Patriot as nothing more than paste.

"Barnes! Is the QuinJet still airworthy?"

[rogue-starsr.livejournal.com]

Sarah limps out from the back room, really tired of being beat up by the Hulk by now, but at least recovered enough to move.

Thor is still holding up the Quinjet, though it appears mostly righted.

Neither is able to go after Maestro just now, though.

[wwii-hero.livejournal.com]

He rises from the rubble and shakes his head to clear it. He's bleeding, and likely has a few busted ribs, but he looks otherwise ready for action.

"It should be, unless he smashed it on its way out."

[thor-odinsson.livejournal.com]

"Nay, my friend. Damaged, but operable."

[house-of-mystiq.livejournal.com]

She lights a cigarette and hurries to the jet. This building looks unstable.

"Good. Is Reed Richard's dead, captive, or just...compacted?" Her flesh ripples in discmofort at the idea of being squeezed into someone's fist like that.

[uneasy-rider.livejournal.com]

Night comes. The change happens.

Before others can react a flaming skill bursts through the nearest barrier between the team and outside. Ghost Rider is aiming a wicked looking gun at Maestro, ready to cover those who need it.

[rogue-starsr.livejournal.com]

Sarah is limping towards the jet, and there's obviously others in the line of fire. no one looks overly likely to be still trying, or at least not able to stop the Maestro from leaving, since his apparent intent is heading out with richards, rather than crushing them all.

[proteus-maximus.livejournal.com]

A slightly wobbly-looking Morph glides slowly back towards the Quinjet.

"Apparently, they call him Maestro because of his soccer skills.."

[bub-snikt.livejournal.com]

Wolverine is pulling a chunk of girder out of his gut.

The Maestro's gone, but he's got his scent.

"More like he thinks he's in control."

Then, he looks at his communicator, leaning against a wall as his body heals up.

"Looks like Banner's little band might have somethin' for us. We could use a break about now."

[house-of-mystiq.livejournal.com]

Raven has a cigarette in her hand, but she can't find her lighter. She stares at the cigarette in frustration. All this destruction and there aren't any damn fires. She shakes her head then just eats the thing.

"I don't even know where to start fighting that thing. If Banner has any ideas, I'm all ears."