The Day From Hell - Under the Fog of Dispair
The mood of the Xavier Institute, known for its ups and downs, had definitely hit a low point. It was easy to see the weight carried by the students there, and by the X-Men who returned. No one could blame them for feeling that way, though. To call this day a disaster for mutants in general would be an understatement. For the X-Men, in particular? It's difficult to imagine things being worse.
The city of Bellingham, which was known for (and quite proud of) its diversity and tolerance, was a war zone by the time they got there. It was in ruins by the time they left. They could do nothing to stop the chaos from starting, they could only put an end to it when it was far too late, and at too high of a cost. Much of the mutant population of the city had been killed, ruthlessly slaughtered by a brigade of Purifiers who were "acting in defense of their fellow man." Of the rest, many were seriously wounded and injured, and were left shellshocked at the devastation they wrought once the device that caused them to go on a rampage was destroyed.
The device itself was housed in the body of the Mayor of the city. Mayor Pike was a good and noble man who pushed for diversity and tolerance, but was infected by Prime Sentinel nano-technology and transformed into an engine of hate against his own will. The X-Men were forced to kill him to stop him, the final act itself having been witnessed by some of the city's residents.
The Mayor's body, and all the prime sentinel technology that was their biggest lead as to who was behind this, had to be left in the custody of SHIELD.
Worldwide media coverage of the crisis in Bellingham had been less than generous towards them. The Purifiers were hailed as heroes, there were numerous reports of the X-Men interfering with them, along with the reports that they murdered the mayor in cold blood. Speculation ran wild as to why so many mutants would riot.
Back home, things hadn't fared any better for the X-Men.
Kevin Ford, a young mutant runaway accused of murdering his father, had been located. The New X-Men, a team of students, went to go retrieve him. They ended up walking right into a trap, one which was set by Donald Pierce, Lady Deathstrike, and their team of Reavers. It was only through the intervention of X-Factor, Special Agent Pierce (and the FBI), and a trio of X-Men that none of the New X-Men died. They did, however, suffer heavy casualties.
Even worse, at the Xavier Institute itself (which, thankfully, hadn't been attacked while the X-Men were away) one of the students, a young man who was brought to them only recently, had killed himself.
But all of that which happened wasn't the cause of the darkness that permeated the place. It was that little bit of knowledge everyone there instinctively carried.
Today was just the opening salvo, and things were only going to get worse long before they would ever get better.
The city of Bellingham, which was known for (and quite proud of) its diversity and tolerance, was a war zone by the time they got there. It was in ruins by the time they left. They could do nothing to stop the chaos from starting, they could only put an end to it when it was far too late, and at too high of a cost. Much of the mutant population of the city had been killed, ruthlessly slaughtered by a brigade of Purifiers who were "acting in defense of their fellow man." Of the rest, many were seriously wounded and injured, and were left shellshocked at the devastation they wrought once the device that caused them to go on a rampage was destroyed.
The device itself was housed in the body of the Mayor of the city. Mayor Pike was a good and noble man who pushed for diversity and tolerance, but was infected by Prime Sentinel nano-technology and transformed into an engine of hate against his own will. The X-Men were forced to kill him to stop him, the final act itself having been witnessed by some of the city's residents.
The Mayor's body, and all the prime sentinel technology that was their biggest lead as to who was behind this, had to be left in the custody of SHIELD.
Worldwide media coverage of the crisis in Bellingham had been less than generous towards them. The Purifiers were hailed as heroes, there were numerous reports of the X-Men interfering with them, along with the reports that they murdered the mayor in cold blood. Speculation ran wild as to why so many mutants would riot.
Back home, things hadn't fared any better for the X-Men.
Kevin Ford, a young mutant runaway accused of murdering his father, had been located. The New X-Men, a team of students, went to go retrieve him. They ended up walking right into a trap, one which was set by Donald Pierce, Lady Deathstrike, and their team of Reavers. It was only through the intervention of X-Factor, Special Agent Pierce (and the FBI), and a trio of X-Men that none of the New X-Men died. They did, however, suffer heavy casualties.
Even worse, at the Xavier Institute itself (which, thankfully, hadn't been attacked while the X-Men were away) one of the students, a young man who was brought to them only recently, had killed himself.
But all of that which happened wasn't the cause of the darkness that permeated the place. It was that little bit of knowledge everyone there instinctively carried.
Today was just the opening salvo, and things were only going to get worse long before they would ever get better.