Kate had sat there unsure what to do for long moments, but when she noticed Fish giving girl starting to go with McCoy she was jolted out of her immobility.  The sirens and helicopters were not anything she wanted to deal with.  She started to leave before realizing both that the football student wasn't following and it would be pretty bad to leave him here.  'Come!  Police! Leave now!' she sent to his mind, alongside feelings of alarm and urgency.

It wasn't like she would be able to make him come with so she hoped that would be enough even as she started to dart after the others as they made there way out of the square.  She wouldn't ever find out if her cloths had melted or not, they were now permanently part of the firmament, the only comfortable pair of boots she had ever found permanently lost.

Through their minds Ana Sofia says, "Police helicopters coming now, too, not just the cars. You'll want to get out of view quickly. Do we have everyone?" She tries to reconcile the list of who is on the trip with those at Central Park as well as the replies she gets.

Waiting in Central Park, Ana Sofía has had a little time to glance around, inspecting very briefly to see if anything natural melted or if it was only man-made stuff.

Frank felt the warning from the cat more than heard it, but he was barely paying attention at any rate. He sat where he was, cradling the dead woman in his arms.

The first thing to really catch his full attention was the helicopters. He wondered what agency they represented, since he couldn't see any insignia, but he supposed it didn't really matter who they were. FBI, NSA, SHIELD, whatever... there would soon be men with guns. Frank could either run away now, or face up to what he'd done.

He wasn't a running away kind of guy. Especially not now.

With a sigh, Frank wiped his eyes with the back of one hand and tried to prepare himself for what might come next.

  Helicopters? Thanks for the heads up. he thought back to Ana Sofia. Victor slowed a bit and rolled to fly backward while he looked behind him.  Black copters aren't NYPD.  Those are probably Feds or worse.  Keep the kids safe and put of sight. I've got eyes on the others. I think everyone is accounted for.  I'll let you know more when I land. It was so weird talking in your head and someone else hearing you...

  Victor wouldn't have known about the helicopters without Ana Sofia's warning until they were on top of him.  The wind whipping by him as he flew drowned out most everything until it was right beside him, like riding a motorcycle without a helmet.
  He knew there'd be some kind of response after an event like this, first responders and cops and fire trucks, but he also knew there'd have to be other agencies scrambling to respond.  Agencies that dealt with extranormal threats...mutant threats specifically...and he figured the Black copters belonged to the latter.

  Kids are safe, for now, in the Park.  You lot okay? Victor spoke as he dropped from the air to the now firm flow of pavement near them.  He turned to keep an eye on the approaching copters.  We gotta go before whoever they are get within weapons range.

Fury shoved the phone back into his pocket.  It was useless; the entire grid was down; all the wireless antennas in half a mile radius were damaged beyond repair, as were the cables running underneath the streets.  He couldn’t make a call out, and the only way to communicate with the rest of his team, and the police below them was by the helicopter’s radio.

"Hold it!  Right there – you see it?” Fury only had one eye, but he sure made it count
”- Take us down”


One of the low flying black choppers hovered in the air, swiveled around on its axis, and descended the few hundred feet to land on what remained on the road – cutting off Hank’s, Zoey’s, and Victor’s escape route.  Out of the helicopter stepped a figure clad entirely in black – from his boots, all the way up to his eyepatch.  He ducked beneath the still spinning rotor blades of the helicopter, his long black coat fluttering in the draft.  A couple of men in Kevlar followed him out, their rifles pointing downwards – for now.

“Well, well.  Looks like I got here just in time.  Y’all need a lift?”

OOC:  This is within eyesight of Central Park, so any hero from that group can join as well.

This message was last edited by the player at 21:15, Mon 23 Nov 2020.

The roads leading up to Time’s Square were all clogged up by piles of twisted metal.  The police officers had to leave their cars behind and venture on foot.  The second black chopper wasn’t as constrained, and once it overtook the police it too landed, not too far away from the man holding the broken body of a young woman, and his cat.

Much like any real cat would in the same circumstances, as the helicopters moved to land Kate bolted.  Sprinting as fast as her little legs would take her away, away from Frank, away from Hank, away from the helicopters.  She wanted nothing to do with anything they might be bringing.

"Lay down, and put your hands over your head!"  the armed people that got off the helicopter shouted at Frank.  They were all black-ops, and had even less qualms about shooting him dead than the police - and that's saying something.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:21, Mon 23 Nov 2020.

Frank didn't lay down, but he lay the woman down gently and put his hands over his head.

"I'm bulletproof," he warned them in a flat, emotionless tone. "You should watch out for ricochets."

Zoey raises an arm to shield her eyes. She'd never actually been this close to a real helicopter before. And she thought the toy drone Allison sent her for Christmas last year was annoying.

As for the men who stepped out... yeah. Zoey was not very happy, no matter how cordial they were trying to be. The man in the longcoat looked like he had just stepped out of a rejected Matrix script -- which was at least some kind of a personality, though good or bad was too early to say.

"I don't trust uniforms! Or guns! And especially not black helicopters!" she shouted to be heard over the cacophony. Speaking of noisy helicopters, Zoey glances about to see where the other one went. Hey, wasn't that where beefy boy went? "My fellow student saved lives and even you should respect that! Call your men off!"

Apparently she doesn't know that Frank is bulletproof. Or that his name is Frank, really.

Knowing there is a good chance the entire subways system is not running Ana Sofía gathers the students with her. "I think we're going to have to walk out of Manhattan. 125th St. on the east side is close to plenty of bridges to the Bronx. If the Harlem line is up and running, inside Manhattan, we'll pick it up at 125th St. If not, we'll cross to the Bronx and try Melrose or use buses and cabs. Is everyone clear? Is everyone ready? Let's stick together now."

Ana Sofía broadcasts to those she's connected to, "I'm getting the kids out of here before anything else happens. We're headed back to the institute, walking to the Harlem line or to pick up transportation in the Bronx."

With that she starts her little crowd headed across Central park to its northeast corner.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:39, Tue 24 Nov 2020.

Despite Zoey's objection the man continued to pace in their direction until he was close enough to be talk without raising his voice over the noise of the still spinning rotors.  The armed men, however, stayed back after he waved them off.

"Trains have stopped; but if you're set on walkin' all the way back to your school, I ain't gonna be the one to stop you"

He turned his attention to Henry.  He was the one he spotted from above.  If he hadn't, the conversation would likely have taken a much darker tone:

"You alright, Professor?"
This message was last edited by the player at 14:47, Tue 24 Nov 2020.

Henry was blind, and was wearing ear-muffs made of metal.  Even his sensitive ears couldn't pick up Fury's voice over the background noise under the circumstances.  He remained standing, motionless, waiting for Zoey to guide him once more toward their destination.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:50, Tue 24 Nov 2020.

"Guess not" Fury pushed his hands into the pockets of his coat and nodded at Zoey
"Well?"

Far away at Time's Square, one of the agents cautiously approached Frank while the others kept their rifles pointed at him.  The handcuffs were made of solid steel.  Had they known Frank could tear them apart like tissue-paper, they wouldn't have bothered.  They didn't, and after cuffing him they felt much safer around him.  Another agent approached, and together with the first one they hoisted Frank up to his feet and ushered him toward the chopper
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:05, Tue 24 Nov 2020.

"You're not police," Frank said. It wasn't a question. The black helicopter and the jumpsuited storm troopers were obviously not NYPD.

He stood still, not walking towards the helicopter. If they wanted to get into a shoving match, they would find Frank very hard to move unless he wanted to be moved. He'd expected to be arrested, but he wasn't going with anyone until they actually indicated they had a legal authority to take him.

"Who are you?"

Zoey kept glancing back to what was once Times Square as the situation progressed. She saw dark blobs interacting, but details were fuzzy. She needed to update the prescription on her glasses. She could only hope that Beefy Boy was managing his circumstances since she had her own to contend with right now. Cat lady, well... a cat always knows when to make themselves scarce!

Looking back to Coat Man, Zoey was beginning to suspect that the person before her was not the average genetypical. He seemed to know the Professor, though that wasn't particularly noteworthy; compared to many mutants he was practically a celebrity. But was that a hint of familiarity in his voice? As for walking back to school, they really would have to. She'd cross-country hiked as a preteen so she could do it, but the idea of running into an angry mob (or worse, the police) was not one she relished. Especially if she rallied the rest of the field trippers... ugh. No thanks.

She wished that she could ask the Professor. It was awfully convenient that he was blind and deaf and unable to raise any objections right now. She has a fleeting fancy to crosswire his nerves to trigger auditory-tactile synesthesia and allow him to "hear" through his skin, but dismisses the idea quickly. That would be some extremely complex work and she wasn't sure if she could do it. She could try tapping his shoulder in Morse Code, but without his eyes or ears how could he recognize them?

Maybe... maybe he couldn't recognize the people, but that insignia looked special. Zoey points to one of the men's badges. "Give me that," she orders them. When (and if) they comply, she presses it into the blue professor's hands. She taps out a quick question in Morse on his shoulder; S-A-F-E?

  Black helicopters, black coats and tactical gear didn't exactly instill trust in Victor.  For all the nonchalance of the one-eyed man, the others with him were itching to pull those triggers.  They already would be if it wasn't for the one-eyed man and whatever games he was playing at.  He seemed to know Dr. McCoy but with the doctor blind and effectively deaf who knows what their actual relationship was like.
  Victor couldn't pull his eyes away from the black class tactical team surrounding the students. We're not to blame for this. he stated flatly to the one-eyed man.  He could tell from the expression on the man's face that he held all the power in this exchange...far more than he was letting on.  Where are you taking us in that chopper?
This message was last edited by the player at 00:49, Thu 26 Nov 2020.

The men with the rifles were busy holding their rifles - they weren't going to let their guard down and give Zoey anything - other than an overdose of lead, if she makes the slightest indication of being dangerous.  They couldn't take any chances after what happened in Manhattan today.

The man-in-black wasn't as panicky. He raised his eyebrow (the one above the patch), when the young woman 'ordered' him to give her his badge, but did oblige her nonetheless.

"I'd take you back home, to your school" Fury answered Victor while Zoey was busy tapping Hank's shoulder  "The lot of you stick like a sore thumb, and after what happened today there will be people out there looking for payback. The last thing I need on my hands is a riot, on top of everything else"

Meanwhile, at Time's Square:

Agent Greer raised the butt of his rifle, ready to smack the impudent young man at the back of his head and knock him out cold.  He was stopped by one of the other men, who physically intervened by forcibly pushing his colleague's hand away.

"S.H.I.E.L.D.  We're with the government, and you're coming with us - one way or the other"  he gave Frank a stern look

Zoey visibly relaxes at the professor's nod. She hands the badge back to Director Fury with a sheepish expression all over her face. "Sorry, Director. You understand. We were on a field trip with a lot of other students; last I saw they were running towards Central Park. One of them is a telepath that should be able to rally the strays. And my cat."

Not actually her cat, or even necessarily a cat, but it wasn't worth taking the time to explain. Now that she trusted the man, the big threat was the coppers getting closer every second they stood here chatting.

Fury nodded

"Alright.  Will get a van to take you back home, and these two - " he motioned with his head at the armed men "Will keep watch till your ride arrives.  Now, if you excuse me, I gotta go find out what happened back there"

Kate thought about running, just leaving everything behind.  She thought about it for a long time, but in the end she couldn't just abandon fish giving girl, and the mansion was warm and full of food, so...

Slinking around melted cars, bus stops, through cranny's and nooks the cat got closer, closer until she was close enough to ask Zoey. 'Safe?'  She didn't want to go out there, the helicopter was still going and loud, and the men with guns whom she certainly didn't trust.

She watched with a bit of attention as the one eyed man headed past her hiding spot towards the football man but once he was past she refocused on the Professor and Zoey.  'I don't want to get on that.'  She passed to them, having to focus to try and let them both know at the same time, the image of the helicopter clear in her message.

Frank sighed.

"Of course I'm going with you," he said. These people were exhausting, and they'd only just gotten there. Part of him was tempted to let the agent hit him with the gun. It could break. That might even be entertaining. "I sat here and waited for you, didn't I?"

He started to board the helicopter, but stopped with one foot on the pavement. He craned his neck around as if to point to the dead woman, forgotten on the pavement. She may have caused a major disaster, but she didn't deserve to be left behind like trash.

"Someone's going to take care of her, right? You're not just going to leave her there, are you?"

Zoey glances about at the familiar-yet-foreign thought in her head. Never safe, she thought back, but close enough given circumstances.

Kate's reluctance vis-a-vis helicopters was understandable. Noisy contraptions. Sounded like Fury (seriously, what kind of name was that?) was going to secure them a ground vehicle, or maybe that was just for the students in Central Park? Didn't really matter to Zoey. Ultimately, though, weighing the two vehicles against each other was missing the more important question. Would you rather stay here? she replied, the slight barb in her mental voice making clear her opinion on that idea even if the connection wasn't mildly empathic.

The cat-girl could probably handle the trip back to the school on her own better than any of them. No one would ever suspect a cat of being a mutant, and with the city FUBAR'd there'd be all the displaced rats she needed to stock calories for the trip. Seemed like a lot of effort to Zoey, though.