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Asgardian Gethsemene, Part 1.
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Apr. 12th, 2013 @ 02:08 am
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When the Exiles materialize in their next location, they have a lot of new company in the middle of a rock-strewn, windy field. In the distance, there is a building with a slanted, thatched roof. It is the only building in the immediate vicinity, though those with sharp eyes may see various small structures even further in the distance.
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Generation Hexed
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Oct. 21st, 2012 @ 04:39 pm
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Three years ago, Xarus Tepes, son and slayer of Dracula, united the warring vampire sects under a new banner. They followed his new vision for the future, a future of vampires empowered in a fashion the world had never seen. A melding of vampire and mutant blood, ushered in through fire and blood. In another world, he might have only sent forth one suicide bomber, in San Fransisco, but in this one, he sent many. Overnight, across the United States, the ranks of the vampire nation swelled, bringing mutants and other superhumans into the fold. Some resisted their new natures, many did not. With the aid of the X-Men, Dracula eventually was restored and then resumed control of the vampire nations and restored order, but the swell in the ranks represented a fundamental shift in power amongst the supernatural community. Almost overnight, other camps began responding. Otherworld tested its pact with the British Isles, soliciting humans to serve as scions of fey magic. Tribes of lycanthropes went on offensive strikes into isolated communities to spread their own condition. Things that lurked in dark places offered more power in exchange for fewer souls.
Now, the world has a new face. Fields of wild magic dotted across the globe render technology moot within their territory, and magic is nearly commonplace. Sentinels and Hulkbusters were repurposed and reshaped into magic-powered golems and armors of hideous might. The world has become the stuff of the Brothers' tales, before Disney and modern media got hold of them. Cities run the gamut from overgrown by restored wilderness, to reshaped into gleaming spires of otherworldly beauty, to ruins.
Where and when the Exiles arrive, it is night by all appearances, but there are no stars, and what appears to be the moon high above is featureless and pristine. By all appearances, they are in what was once a suburban neighborhood, but the homes now are either falling apart, or fortified and bearing runes and hex marks across their structures. Swathes of thornbushes have replaced flower-beds and lawns, and spikes of iron ring some of the properties, seemingly the remains of automobiles, torn apart by bare hands and claws.
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Jul. 13th, 2012 @ 12:08 pm
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As they regroup, Sarah glances down at the Tallus, looking puzzled for a few moments.
"Alright... the Tallus is trying to tell me the next step. We need to take the sword to 'our place of greatest strength', and 'bring back what was lost.'" She offers the soul sword towards Quinn. "I think I'm supposed to give this to you."
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May. 20th, 2012 @ 10:44 pm
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A cold wind bit at them the second they arrived outside of Moscow. The city didn't look similar to any Moscow the Exiles were familiar with. The entire city looked like a giant impregnable fortress. To say this wasn't going to be easy was a huge understatement.
"Stay alert," Quinn said as he readied some spells for the inevitable attack.
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Fire and Brimstone
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Nov. 8th, 2011 @ 09:18 pm
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A year ago, the demons of Limbo invaded the human world in force, intending to merge it with their own realm. The key was the human, Madelynne Pryor, a mortal who was being used as the means to unite the worlds. The means to do so was the sacrifice of her infant son, Nathan. There were those who attempted to stop this sacrifice and prevent the connection from solidifying..they failed. The connection was formed, Pryor ascended into the demonic goddess, the Goblyn Queen, and the world was overrun with the demons of Limbo. While the heroes of the Earth attempted to defeat the Goblyn Queen, her newfound power was too great and most were struck down outright. Only the Darkchylde, Illyanna Rasputin and her servant, S'ym,, remain independent of the dark goddess' rule, for reasons Pryor has not shared with her demonic subjects. With her ascension, she lost her soul and her human perspective, and contemplates the darkness of her world from the top of her tower in what was once New York City, leaving direct rule to her advisor, the demon sorceror N'astirih.
The world had changed dramatically in a year. The skies are a constant shade of red, while boiling clouds rumbling in the skies, crimson lightning flashing constantly. Save for the structures built by the demons, not a single structure remains whole. Even the air itself is tinged with the scent of brimstone. The remnants of human civilization scavenge for food or sell their souls to appease their demon overlords. A very few have gone underground, trying to resist whenever possible. However, the world will seem unsightly bare, unless demons are about to have their fun.
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For some, new beginnings. For others, Wednesday
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Sep. 21st, 2011 @ 07:29 pm
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Place: The Desert outside of time, near the kitchen
Time: outside of time. Do read more carefully. Possibly Wednesday
The Exiles are pulled out of the world before they're allowed to do any more damage. Everyone else forgets all but the new timeline. Some things, some people, never existed. But the Exiles remember - just like always.
They're greeted by the smell of fresh brewed coffee, fresh baked blueberry muffins, and a 20' fall, since they appear well above the desert floor.
Given that they've been here before, and there's only one place to go, the Timebroker assumes they'll be along eventually, while he tends to the baking.
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Ladies Night
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Aug. 31st, 2011 @ 11:44 am
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The Tallus was, predictably but unfortunately, very literal - they got to stay for the funeral. The second the last Exile leaves the doors of the small reception afterwards, they all disappear from Xavier's, and appear in a lush, green wilderness. For those who are used to modern worlds, the air smells cleaner than they have ever encountered, any hint of pollution and the like replaced with the press of vast wilderness.
Once a couple of them take to the air, the first sign of civilization is an impressive one - visible even from a vast distance away, if, perhaps, not the kind of impressive they're used to. Roman columns, polished marble, high stone walls, two palace-like structures, and an arena that would dwarf any modern football stadium can be picked out over the great distance. While smoke rises in places, its wood smoke, no sign of true industrialization present - but the sheer size of the palaces and the stadium make the time hard to discern, as such structures would have been impossible to build in Roman times with the architectural techniques they had, and a city that size would be impossible to sustain without some sort of advanced water supply gathering and waste disposal. Cities just didn't grow in the ancient world, and this place would be comperable in sprawl to many American east coast cities.
There are two other things obvious fairly quickly. First, Dane can feel it right away: Sersi is here... in that city.. Second, as usual, Kev has already been replaced. And due to that replacement, Sarah doesn't mention what the Tallus says right away. She just turns and... stares.
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Epilogue
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Aug. 22nd, 2011 @ 11:22 am
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(ooc: Exiles and X-Men NPCs are welcome to mourn, talk, recover, etc. here. The next plot will be beginning soon.)
The Exiles stopped Apocalypse, but at a terrible cost. Kevin Kinross is dead, all of his bodies nothing but dust. The Exiles have 'graciously' been permitted to stay for the funeral, though there's nothing to bury. If nothing else, they needed the time to heal, though for some, it won't be nearly enough time. Sarah's left arm is broken in three places, her shoulder dislocated, and has a handful of other fractures. She heals quickly, but not that quickly. Dorrek heals more quickly still, but he's learned that some scars obtained on Exiles' Road may take far longer to heal, as the vague threat from the Timebroker of him slaying his love and his friends has become an all-to-real image thanks to Dani Moonstar, and the whole thing has turned a lot more real. Tasha's armor is damaged. Not beyond repair - and the X-Men can lend some help via Hank McCoy and Madison Jeffries, but there may yet be some 'glitches.' None of them are Tony Stark. And, of course, even within this world, Rahne, Wolverine and others need to live with the deaths they've caused - especially hard on Wolvesbane, recovering her mind and ability to change back and forth is a blessing, but also a curse, as she now realizes, and must live with what she's done.
The impact of resolving this world, however, echoes far beyond this one.
The Timebroker watches through one of his screens, as a world - Kev's world, reshapes itself. Here, for a time, he was a monster. In the world he remembered, he was stopped, at a cost - including his sanity. With no Kev to return, the world must resolve his absence... and so it does, as the reality-warping Proteus was opposed by Apocalypse, En Sabbah Nur unwilling to have the world he sought to rule turned into a cattle yard. With knowledge of Proteus' weakness, Kevin Kinross stood no chance - so in the end, he did the only thing he could, in a brief flash of sanity - Rae Rankin was lent Proteus' reality-warping powers, and with them, defeated Apocalypse for good - at the cost of Kevin Kinross' life, briefly possessing Apocalypse's body for the briefest of instants to create hesitation - letting the young mutant destroy En Sabbah Nur while the first mutant's metal form destroyed Kevin Kinross.
The funeral was a place of mixed blessings for many - but not for his 'brother' and 'sister' - Douglas Ramsay and Rahne Sinclair, soon to be Rahne Ramsay. They mourned openly, and eventually would do the savior of the world the best tribute they could... as soon as he finishes school, Kevin Xavier Ramsay will be joining the X-Men, even as Rae Rankin prepares to take up the team's leadership.
"Hm." the Timebroker muses, considering the implications. "Not ideal... but stable. It will do."
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Aug. 2nd, 2011 @ 11:20 pm
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The fight with the Hulk was over, but a bigger threat now loomed. Apocalypse had risen and once again threatened the world. He closed in on New York. It would be his capital in the world he would shape.
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No Rest For the Weary
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May. 3rd, 2011 @ 08:46 pm
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The alarms cut through the silence of the night and started blaring. The residents and guests of the mansion would come from their rooms and other places to find injured individuals around the grounds. Most were sporting bleeding cuts and gashes that appeared to have been made by claws. A few faces were definitely missing from the gathered group.
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Uh-oh.
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Feb. 15th, 2011 @ 07:34 pm
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The next day at the Institute was very nice. Gwenny talked at breakfast with Miss Laura Kinney, who'd brought them there and was warming up to the whole situation. Miss Kinney introduced Gwenny to her visiting brother, Mr. Logan. He seemed very nice. He lived most of the time in Tokyo, but he wasn't a fascist.
Miss Rogers was with the big blue fuzzy man, Dr. McCoy, translating the Tallus's poetry. They'd grabbeda bite and then gone to finish up with that.
And then Gwenny realized whom she hadn't seen all morning: Mr. Kev. He wasn't anywhere to be found. Apparently, this Mr. Ramsay -- Mrs. Ramsay was just the cutest doggie ever, even if it was so sad! -- was missing, too.
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Holiday on Exiles Road
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Jan. 4th, 2011 @ 09:38 pm
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They disappear from the midst of the chaos surrounding the assault on the Helicarrier, Sentry's Tower disappearing even as they fade out.
As she reappears, every bone in Sarah's body hurts. She's sure there's at least a couple cracked ribs, and third degree burns on her back, despite the armor - which is gone now, along with that world's Mjolnir. The only remaining sign of it is that her own clothes are in better shape than if she'd taken the cheap shot in the back in them.
She blinks awake, not hearing the crowds and chaos of battle, but rather, waves lapping up on a beach. Then something else, far more surprising. She sits up, slowly and painfully, but nonetheless under her own power, glancing at the others.
"The Tallus says we have a week to rest and recover. I a week, there'll be a surfer out there..." she points out over the water, testing her arm a bit. "Right now she's just a high schooler on some kind of cheer team road trip vacation, but in 20 years, she's supposed to be the diplomat who prevents World War III and nuclear armageddon. The timeline ripples mean she's going to die in a surfing accident. If we save the cheerleader, we save the world... til then, we can take it easy."
She glances at the Tallus and sighs. A little relieved herself, but she's sure some of the others may take it harder. "Its January 4th here, timeline running just slightly faster than where we were. I'm sorry guys, we missed Christmas this year... but we're getting a few days off."
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New Year's Resolutions
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Dec. 31st, 2010 @ 12:13 pm
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There's a piece of paper and a pen attached to a bulletin board. Across the top is written:
New Year's Resolutions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
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20.
+
Anonymous entries accepted.
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Sarah and Dani vs Ms. Marvel and Screaming Mimi
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Oct. 22nd, 2010 @ 02:08 am
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The test match was over and Sarah and Dani were scheduled for their next fight. Tonight they were going to face Ms. Marvel and Screaming Mimi. Winning that match was necessary to get a shot at Grimm and Parker.
They had a few hours of downtime which had been spent in posh dressing rooms.
Then it was time for the match.
Natasha led them out to the ring amidst boos and jeers. Natasha yelled at the crowd in Russian as they walked to the ring.
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With Great Power Comes... Shiny Faux Gold Belts, pt. 2
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Sep. 23rd, 2010 @ 06:15 pm
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Natasha purchased the shortest and tightest little black dress she could find and a pair of killer heels to go with it. The dress of course showed off ample cleavage. She was going to negotiate with a man after all. They were easily distracted by the female body and Natasha was one to put her assets to full use.
Dani and Sarah were with her as the clients she represented and managed.
Natasha sauntered up to the guards at the door to the building. She gave them a small smile. "I am here to see Mr. Edward Garner," she said with a thick Russian accent.
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With Great Power Comes... Shiny Faux Gold Belts, pt. 1
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Aug. 24th, 2010 @ 12:58 pm
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The Exiles disappear from the asteroid in the midst of massed armadas after the fight with Thanos, down two of their number. After the grandeur of space and sweeping cosmic nature of their last mission, its kind of a shock to the system to end up in a dusty parking lot outside a massive arena. Currently the place is empty, though signboards flash up some of the current events planned to take place there in the near future.
Just as pressing, of course, there's a couple new faces in their midst.
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Let This Be Your Last Battlefield
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Jul. 18th, 2010 @ 04:17 pm
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The small planetoid was uninhabited and nothing more than a rock in space rolling around double stars. It was the most unassuming place, but it would be the site of a battle that would determine the fate of the universe.
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For all the marbles
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Jul. 4th, 2010 @ 07:33 pm
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Moondragon descends from the waiting fleet as more and more ships return, deploying troops. She lands amongst the Exiles as they re-gather.
"Adam Warlock is dead. As is your companion, Roxanne Simpson. She died heroically, I am assured." she says, her voice cool, as if she were reading the evening news.
"Thanos has recovered two of the gems and is on his way. Normally I would ask for the gems to distribute to the most powerful among us... but I fear that would doom us as empires fall into squabbling over toys when the universe is at stake. I therefore urge you to prepare amongst yourselves to battle Thanos. You have more gems... but he is more skilled in their use, and utterly ruthless. Despite his power and intelligence, however, we have an edge. He will come here... with Death watching, he will not turn down our challenge, and will attempt to defeat us head on. If we fail this time, however, I am certain there will be no last second save by a Silver Surfer this time. I do not think we have much time - so prepare well."
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Kev and Tasha
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Jun. 7th, 2010 @ 06:15 pm
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As soon as Skuttlebutt re-entered the orbit of the battlefield planet, Kev noticed that the ship belonging to the green nuns or whatever they were was already back in orbit. Good. Theirs hadn't been the only success. They came in for a landing.
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Galactus and the Power Gem
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May. 7th, 2010 @ 11:04 pm
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Before, there was too much sudden shock and death to think much. Now, Sarah has a lot of space aboard the Shi'ar flagship. Most of the Imperial Guard has been sent to comb other corners of the galaxy, but Adam Warlock and Lilandra alike seemed fairly certain that Galactus would know something, or possibly have been somewhere the Surfer would consider 'safe' for a gem. The down side is, Galactus has not always been the most helpful of beings.
She stands on the bridge, staring out into space, and trying hard to force herself to look ahead, instead of back.
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