Alternate X-Men #64
Michael Triggs at TRIGGS_MICH@bentley.edu
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@ Front Cover @
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Jean Grey, Bishop, and Beast are locked in battle with Impulse, Rage, 
Pretty Persuasions, and Night Thrasher, from the Psionex. A blondish cat 
sniffs at Wolverine, who is lying prone in the foreground.
 
The caption reads : Party-Crashers!!
 
A corner caption reads : Plus, Locus crashes again!
 
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@ Back Cover @
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Jean Grey stands, staring at shock at an Image of Cyclops being generated
by a projector held by Night Thrasher. She reaches out for the hologram, her
hand passing through it. Beast and Bishop stare in shock at the hologram,
also.
 
The caption : From A Dim Light, Shadows Of The Past Emerge..
 
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@ Title : Images And Words  @
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-*-

( Note : This story takes place at the same time as Alternate X-Men #63  -Mike)

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@Prelude@ 
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Scene : Washingon, D.C. - Congress
 
-*-
 
Trevor Faulkman clumsily carries folders upon folders over to a payphone
on the outskirts of the building. He looks very nervous, as he dials up
a number.
 
<From the phone> : Coma Aka Piche Line?
 
Trevor Faulkman hangs up angrily. "Dammit. I hate it when I misdial
Fiji."
 
He dials the number again, making sure not to screw it up. Hearing a 
familiar voice, he begins rambling, in a hushed voice.
 
"Tiger, it's Troy. I almost forgot. Were the armoured goons able to plant
 the smart bomb at the mansion?"
 
Tigerstryke <from the other end of phone> : Yep. They did. It's not
a smart bomb, though. Refract made some modifications to it, increasing its 
blast capabilities. It's a very, very, very -- 
 
-*-
"-- smart bomb"
 
Scene : The X-Mansion. Deep inside the waxworks of the mansion, several
stories down, a metallic orb rests on metallic tentacles. A red LCD
screen counts down.. If you listen particularly carefully, you might
hear it singing :
 
"I'm a little teapot, short and stout.."
 
-*-
Scene : Back In Washington
 
Trevor is still on the phone with Tigerstryke :
 
Tigerstryke : So, how goes the X-Factor Protocols? Are they buying it?
 
Trevor : Are they.. They're eating it up like spaghetti!! We will be getting
government funding for sure!! For the legal stuff we do, anyways.. Later..
 
Trevor hangs up the phone, grabbing several folders, returning to the 
Congress lobby.. As he walks in, he takes an entire package of Mentos, and
devours them nervously, wrapping and all..
 
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@ End Prelude @
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Scene : The X-Mansion --> Several stories up.. Somebody lurks through a 
computer that doesn't belong to him.. His name is Dwayne Turner.. That's
what his friends call him.. Those who don't know him too well call him
Night Thrasher, a self-proclaimed renegade utilizing his technology in
acts of vengeance. Today is no different. However, he never was looking
for a direct conflict today. Merely doing some information gathering.
However, things turned ugly..
 
Pretty Persuasions, a black-haired doll, wearing a thick brown coat, and
little more underneath, comes running in, jingling a pair of keys around 
her finger, as Night Thrasher wires hinself into the X-Men's computer 
network, searching for something.
 
"Dude, you're not going to like this. Impulse and Rage are
brawlin with some-o-the-X-Men up above..
 
Night Thrasher slams his hand down angrily : Dammit, this isn't what we
wanted..
 
"Then what were you looking for?" A voice sounds, from a room away..
 
With no warning, the Psionex-member known as Impulse comes flying into
the room, propelled by unseen force. He slams into the computer,
knocking ajar.
 
The voice sounds again, as Night Thrasher finds himself lifted off his feet.
 
"You kidnap our Professor.."
 
Night Thrasher is slammed against the wall..
 
"Nearly kill Wolverine -again-.."
 
Night Thrasher's armor is crunched, as he screams in pain.
 
"And ransack our house, and you're saying you're not looking for a fight?"
 
Night Thrasher drops to the ground, at the feet of Jean Grey, the speaker.
 
Beast comes running in. For a second, he thinks of trying to calm Jean down.
However, he can tell by that look in her eyes, for all she's been through
in the last few weeks, that she needs to vent. -- But at what cost?
 
"Jean, maybe we need to approach this using a more rational method."
 
With lightning reflexes, Impulse, now recovered, attempts to knock Jean
off-balance, as Beast counters him in mid-air, pinning him to the ground.
 
Jean : See where this rational method has gotten us? I'm sick of being
rational! While we're sitting around being rational, the powers that be
are beating us to a bloody pulp. Maybe Cable has the right idea
afterall.
 
Impulse : "We didn't do any of this! We found the place like this. Quit
trying to shift the blame on us, you dumb broad. You're the ones on trial
here. Or have you forgotten what you're comrade has done to us?"
 
Jean stares Impulse down, as she turns her back from Night Thrasher.
 
Jean : What about Wolverine? You nearly killed him!
 
Rage comes running into the room, being pursued by Bishop, who is firing
at him. Rage throws his full weight onto Beast, knocking him off Impulse,
who uses the momentum to leapfrog at Jean, staring her down :
 
Impulse <same time as Rage> : "And if we didn't hurt him, he would have 
killed us!"
 
Rage <Same time as Impulse> : "We weren't tryin to kill him. He's supposed to
be 
harder to kill then that!"
 
Jean shoves Impulse away again, as Rage and Beast duke it out, each
cautious of the other's raw power. Instincts flaring, Jean tosses Impulse 
against the computer terminal, knocking several buttons. "Why should we 
believe one word that you say?"
 
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Impulse inadvertently sets off something programmed in the computer.
The lights suddenly go out, as a holographic projection of Cyclops
attacking the Psionex. With cold-blooded accuracy, he blasts one of them,
a crystalline fellow, breaking him into millions of fragments.
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Night Thrasher : "That's why you should believe us. I was able to
record this from a distance with my viewing camera. We found Cyclops
lurking about the remains of Genetech. Here is solid proof that he
killed one of our own. We have other evidence hinting that he killed
at least two more. What more do you want? Pictures don't lie."
 
"But they can be doctored!!!"
 
Bishop holds his rifle at Night Thrasher, turning to Jean :
 
"I say we shoot first, and sort all this out later."
 
-No Response-
 
"Jean?"
 
Bishop turns around, to find Jean perplexed by the picture, she reaches out 
for the image of Cyclops, her husband, which has enlarged and zoomed in
upon in the picture.
 
Bishop <whispering to Jean> : This must be some sort of trick.
 
Jean Grey <reaching out to the holographic image of Cyclops> : That can't be 
him.
 
Night Thrasher : It is. We ran a DNA match on an article of shredded 
clothing from his uniform, and fits that of Cyclops perfectly.
 
Bishop <pulling the gun on Night Thrasher> : Liar! How could you have
possibly gotten a prior sample of his DNA?
 
Night Thrasher chucks his throwing stick at Bishop, knocking the gun out
of his hand. "You'd be surprised what I know."
                               
Jean Grey : He's not lying. Their stories seem to be genuine.
 
Bishop <turning to Jean> : Jean?
 
Jean Grey : I took the time to psi-scan the others. Their fears seem to be
genuine. In all my frustration, the idea of scanning them slipped my mind.
 
Beast : If you are telling the truth, then we have a lot to discuss. Perhaps
we can solve some of your mysteries, and you can solve some of ours.
 
Bishop <still a bit heated> : For starters, what happened to the Professor?
People just don't disappear!
 
-*-
 
Down below, in one of the sub-basements of the X-Mansion, a strange looking
device, rapidly changing in shape, ticks off a counter, which is getting
dangerously close to zero.
 
-*-
 
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@ Interlude @
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Scene : Santa Fe, New Mexico -Midair-..
 
A portal opens in the sky, as the masked woman known as Locus comes flying
out of it, landing with a thud.. She mutters the words Gateway in 
conjunction with a few vulgarities under her breath, as she taps her fingers
against the concrete of a city sidewalk, with her feet dangling over her 
body, in a most uncomfortable position.
 
A crowd forms around her.. Several tourists get snapshots.. Locus gets up, 
trying to regain her sense of balance, shoving several people with cameras
out of the way..
 
"Jesus? What's the big deal? Haven't you ever seen a masked young adult drop
out of the sky and crash into a city-sidewalk before? Judging by the way
you're acting, one'd think it was a rare event or something.. Man."
 
Locus goes trudging off, with an ounce of chutzpah in her step.. "Okay,
girl, let's see why and where Gateway through you to this time.. The things
you have to go through to ask that old sap a question.."
 
Locus walks down a nearly abandoned street, littered with rubble. She sees
a police barricade in front of her, about fifty yards in the distance. As
she walks, she babbles aimlessly to herself :
 
"I mean, he puts you through a bloody obstacle course, regardless of the
dimension.. Why can't I just walk up to him, and ask him a question, like
-Where the heck am I- and have him answer it directly for a change, saying
like -You're in Cleveland, in Dimension #251/Blue-??"
 
Locus scans the roadblock ahead of her, noting a smouldering building in
the distance..
 
"Whoa, this is starting to remind me of home.. Ruins.. Sirens.. Blockades..
 Ha! Blockades.. Useless against me.. What good is a blockade against 
 a person who can get down the street with just a ..-"
 
Locus creates a portal, leaping through it, emerging through another portal
past the blockade..
 
"--a few teeny-weeny steps.. So, where have I 'stepped' to?"
 
Locus finds herself amidst the ruins of a damaged building. In the distance,
a very familiar face, that of Warren Worthington III, is sifting through the
rubble with his wings. Psylocke, who limps on a pair of crutches, looking
absolutely exhausted, attempts to get him to stop.
 
Psylocke : Please, stop looking. This isn't your fault. You've been looking
for the last three days!
 
Archangel : If Rogue is dead, then where's the body? Where's the ashes? What
  the heck is going on? People just don't disappear!
 
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@ End Interlude @
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Scene : X-Factor Headquarters
-----------------------------
 
Several people gather around a monitor, including Oliver Chaulker, who 
seems back to full health, despite previously injury, and Tigerstryke, who
is wearing is batlle-armor underneath a large leather cloak. Several other
high-muck-a-mucks stand about, shaking hands. Oliver Chaulker holds a
large bowl of popcorn, as he stands at the screen, which displays a 
picture of the ..
 
Scene : X-Men Basement
----------------------
 
A small device morphs rapidly in shape, seemingly having rooted itself in
the ground. On it, a tiny ticker counts down to 60, as the noise of people
arguing can be heard coming from the upper levels of the Basement..
 
Scene : X-Factor Headquarters
-----------------------------
 
Suddenly, a portal opens, and Trevor Faulkman comes rushing in, holding
several batgs, folders, and a briefcase balanced haphazardly on his nose.
Dropping everything with a loud thud, he begins to clean out his pocket
of Mentos wrappers. (Incidentally, but irrelevantly, a Mentos drops to
the ground, and is consumed by a mouse, who then proceeds to chase after
a nearby cat, which runs away, leaving out the portal.)
 
Trevor runs up to the monitor, his gaze reflecting from it.
 
Trevor <to Tiger> : What's up with your cat, Tiger?
 
Tiger <to Trevor> : Probably afraid of your body odor. Haven't you ever heard
  of deodorant, chap? <sniffing> Somebody's deodorant isn't working.
 
Trevor : Couldn't be mine. I forgot to put some on this'morning. Did I miss
  it? Did I miss it?
 
Tiger : No, but isn't your Congressional meeting more important this?
 
Trevor's eyes gleam into the monitor, like those of a young child watching
the Power Rangers.
 
Trevor : We're on recess until tomorrow.. Besides, I wouldn't miss this for
  the world.. Oliver, how many minutes?
 
Oliver, a short fellow, with a dweebish look to him pulls out a watch :
 
"30 seconds.. This Micky Mouse watch is cool.. I got it from my mom.."
 
Trevor <ignoring Oliver's rambling> : Cool! Thirty seconds, and the
  fireworks begin!!
 
-*-
 
Scene : The X-Mansion Basement
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The bomb counts down.. 5- 4- 3- 2- .. 1.
 
<TO BE CONTINUED>
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

