BLACK WOMB

Part II: Finders

By Ryan Krupienski and Dino Pollard

The Xavier Institute; Laboratory of Dr. Henry McCoy

The yellow, cat-like eyes of Hank McCoy scan over the findings on the monitor before him. His eyes move to the side, taking in the sight of the mutant known only as Ever.

“Hmm…” says Beast. “I assume you already know what I’m going to tell you.”

“That after the stunt I pulled with Cassandra, my powers are growing beyond my capacity to control them,” says Ever.

“Precisely,” says Beast.

“In that case, what now?” asks Ever.

“Your… condition has been taking up what little spare time I have to myself as of late, so in that regard, I have good news and I have bad news.”

“Bad news first,” says Ever.

“The bad news is that I haven’t found a way to halt the growth of your powers,” says Beast.

“And the good?”

“The good is that I had the foresight to design something in the event that I wouldn’t be able to find a way to stop this,” says Beast. He stands from his chair and walks over to a small closet. He opens the door and pulls something out, a suit of some sort, and hands it to Ever.

“A uniform?” asks Ever.

“Containment suit, actually” replies Beast. “Psi-dampeners have been wired into the fabric. Not enough to prevent you from accessing your powers, but they dampen your powers just enough to grant you full control over them.”

“Is this the solution?” asks Ever.

“No,” replies Beast. “This is just a temporary solution until I’m able to find the cause. Think of it as a cast you wear before the bone is mended. I’ll continue trying to find a way to reverse the process, or at least halt it.”

“Thanks, I appreciate it,” says Ever.

“Think nothing of it,” says Beast. He sits back at the computer and strikes a series of keys. “With that said, I’ve just cleared you for field duty, you’re back on the active roster. So no more of this lounging around.”

“Fair enough,” says Ever.

Black Womb Facility; Nevada

A squad composed of five X-Men explores the facility which not long ago was bustling with activity. Today, however, it is empty. The X-Men find themselves the lone occupants as they walk the corridors.

“I don’t like this,” says Bishop. “It’s too quiet.”

“They’ve abandoned,” says Fantomex. “Their location’s been compromised, there’s no reason for them to remain.”

“Makes sense,” says Domino. “If we found them, the chance that someone else could is too great. These shadow organizations are more paranoid than conspiracy nuts.”

“What are we looking for in here anyway?” asks Havok.

“We need to find some clue as to where we can find them,” replies Domino.

“Organizations like this aren’t known for leaving behind clues,” says Bishop. “It’s a miracle the base is still standing.”

“Could be a reason for that,” says Deathbird. “Maybe they want to be found.”

“She has a point,” says Fantomex. “Follow me.”

Fantomex takes point. The other four X-Men exchange curious glances, but follow anyway as he leads the way. He turns at the next corridor, and pushes open the double doors at the end of it. The X-Men follow him inside, and they find a room lined with monitors.

“Anyone know how to hack into a top-secret organization?” asks Havok.

Domino steps up to the keyboard and presses the enter key. The monitors flash on, and a box appears that reads, ‘MESSAGE WAITING’. Domino looks to the rest of her team for some reassurance.

“It could be anything,” says Havok. “For all we know, by opening it, we may be activating a self-destruct code or something.”

“It’s also the only lead we have,” says Bishop.

“You’re right,” says Domino.

“Which one?” asks Havok.

“Both of you,” replies Domino. “But I’m opening it.”

“Here’s hoping your luck holds out…” mutters Havok.

Domino ignores his comment and hits the enter key once more. A seperate window pops up on the screen.

“What is it?” asks Bishop.

“Numbers,” replies Domino.

“Not just numbers,” says Fantomex. “Coordinates.”

“We show up at the only Black Womb base we know exists, and not only is it abandoned, not only do the computers still work, but we conveniently find a message that has coordinates on it?” asks Havok. “C’mon, this is obviously a trap.”

“Naturally,” says Deathbird. “That’s where the fun lies.”

“Either way, we should give Kurt a heads up,” says Domino.

The Xavier Institute; War Room

“We read you loud and clear, Domino,” says Nightcrawler. Standing by his side in the War Room is Phoenix. They both face a monitor which shows Domino’s face on it.

“We found a set of coordinates,” says Domino through the transmission. “Right now, it’s our only lead. Could possibly be just another base like the one here in Nevada, but there’s a chance that it could be Black Womb’s headquarters. But the way we found the coordinates was a bit too easy.”

“It’s a trap, more than likely,” says Phoenix. “But we don’t have much choice. Domino, I want your team to head to those coordinates as soon as possible.”

“We can’t send them in alone,” says Nightcrawler.

“They’re not going alone, Kurt,” says Phoenix. “I want you to take Scanner, Ever, and Sunpyre and meet them there. If Black Womb can produce something like the Neo, then they’re too dangerous. We have to shut them down.”

“I understand, but you’re being brash and impulsive,” says Nightcrawler. “We need more time to form a strategy, to decide on what we’re going to do.”

“While we sit around talking about what we’re going to do, who knows how many more children Black Womb will kidnap?” asks Phoenix. “Worse yet, how many more children will they experiment on?”

“She’s right, blue,” says Domino. “We don’t have time to waste, these guys gotta be stopped.”

“I know…” mutters Nightcrawler. “But I don’t like just running into things.”

“Kurt, you may be field leader, but I’m still the headmistress in Cassandra’s absence,” says Phoenix. “That means I’m the one in charge. You take orders from me. Are we clear on that?”

“Crystal,” says Nightcrawler. He trains his eye on Jean for a moment, a woman he has long referred to as a friend. He dismisses her attitude simply as stress over recent events. The past few weeks have been stressful on all of them, especially so on Jean.

“Good,” says Phoenix. She turns her attention to the screen. “Nightcrawler’s team will meet you at the coordinates.”

“Gotcha. Domino out.”

“I’ll go prep the second Blackbird jet,” says Nightcrawler. “Notify the rest of my team, have them assemble in the hangar.”

“I will,” says Phoenix. Before the words escape her lips however, Nightcrawler has already vanished in a flash of light, smoke, and brimstone.

Black Womb Headquarters; East Asia

Alex Summers, otherwise known as Havok, sits in the Blackbird’s cockpit. His eyes watch a small monitor, which tracks the progress of the second Blackbird jet, a jet that holds Nightcrawler’s squad of X-Men.

“They’ll be coming up on us soon, Jeannie,” he says into the headset he wears. “I’m just awaiting confirmation from them.”

“Fair enough, Alex,” replies Jean. Her soft voice echoes through his earpiece as she communicates to him from the Xavier Institute. “Watch your step in there, though.”

“Believe me, no one knows how dangerous Black Womb is more than me,” he says. As he says those words, he recalls his previous experience in a Black Womb facility – when two of their genetically engineered mutants caused him to witness the visage of his son from another reality. It was an experience that frightened him and has made him question what has happened to his son and the reality he was born in. Alex has returned home to his own world, but at what price? He made a life for himself there, a life he was forcibly ripped from.

“Alex?” asks Jean. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” replies Alex. “Just a little uneasy about this whole situation.”

“Keep it together in there,” says Jean. “Fantomex is still a wild card, and despite what Bishop says, I don’t fully trust Deathbird.”

“Can’t say I blame you,” says Alex. “But remember that pretty much everyone on the team was untrustworthy at some point. The X-Men seem to have a habit of taking in shady characters.”

A beeping noise alerts Havok’s attention.

“I’ve got an incoming call, Jean, it’s probably Kurt’s team,” he says. “I’ll contact you after the mission’s complete.”

He switches to the next channel on the comm-link and hears Nightcrawler’s voice through his earpiece.

“Blackbird Two to Blackbird One,” says Nightcrawler.

“Blackbird One here,” says Havok. “How’s it going, Kurt? Finally decided to get your lazy butt down here, eh?”

“We’re approaching the destination right now, Alex,” replies Nightcrawler. “In fact, I’m looking down at you right now.”

“Well it’s about time,” says Havok. “Hurry up and land, some of us are starting to get antsy.”

“Understood,” says Nightcrawler. “Activating VTOL system now.”

“We’ve got a problem,” says Sunpyre.

“What?” asks Nightcrawler.

“Sensors are picking up hostiles,” replies Sunpyre. “And they’re incoming…”

Nightcrawler diverts his attention to the window to see missiles flying towards the Blackbird.