I've been chillin' out on a star with my 5 star view

[lucetimods]

Who: All draftees
What: The space battle commences
When: After 3PM on the 19th to the 23rd
Where: In Space! On the Moon!
Summary: The battle finally begins! First there's asteroids to take down, then we finally arrive!
Rating: SPACE

MORE SPACE

All the details you need are here, so read up on it. This didn't get mentioned before, but you can tag the cultists instead of killing them. Details on this are on a previous draft post. Using the scanners are optional!

There will be a thread for interacting with NPCs, but they may not all go up at once, so keep an eye out for them.

Note: A log for the events in the village will go up on the 21st, in time for the hurricane and droid incursion.

Comments

[selfhelp]

Heh, yeah. I'm... definitely from a while into the future.

[Whew. It's the easiest answer, really- he can't even say how far into the future, because he knows he's a lot older than he ought to be for one of Wanda's children. The whole issue of transmigrated souls or whatever is still just barely within his grasp of understanding.]

[touchofrogue]

[So. He never had a chance to ask her. Which. Told her a lot more he probably wanted her to know, really. That was a minefield, and one she'd rather not disturb at this point.

But this is bringing up an entirely different, erratic, and random line of thought and she can't help but pursue it a little bit, because it might be sick, but Gawd, wasn't everything right now?]

...so Magneto's your granddaddy? He still in the habit of causin' problems in your world?

/BOMBSHELL x2

[selfhelp]

[Oh god. His eyes widen at that question, and he purses his lips before responding. He hadn't really given much thought to his potential family relations beyond Wanda herself (and his own newfound twin, of course), so the idea of Magneto being his grandfather is... strange. Kind of cool, kind of terrifying. But there are good reasons for why he hasn't told people about all of this, and Magneto is one of them.]

...Actually? Scott Summers let him join the X-Men recently.

hoooo boy 1/2

[touchofrogue]

[Congratulations, Billy. You have the rare pleasure of seeing Rogue shocked.

All those implications were.

Staggering. Staggering is the word.

He'd said that mutants were protected on his world, which made her antsy enough, but that Scott was in charge, that Scott would do something like this was--

Things are really bad, aren't they.]

[touchofrogue]

[Not my suitcase.

Compartmentalization was hard for her, though, and she lets out a long, low whistle, partly just to buy herself some time.]

Dang.

[...sadly, it doesn't work too well. She's still stuck on this, completely diverted from her other thought.]

[selfhelp]

[He fully recognizes that this is kind of a Big Deal for her, so he'll try to expand on it a little.]

To be honest, I don't know all of the details, but from what I've heard, he's changed a lot. He's not a terrorist anymore, and he's actually trying to help mutants without hurting humans at the same time. Things were bad for a while, really bad, but... he must have done something to earn their trust.

[touchofrogue]

Mags is some special kind of twisted.

[Just thinking about his little brainwash meteor project - or heck, what he did to your mom is all it takes for Rogue to be incapable of cutting him any slack based on his horrible experiences and "good intentions," let alone all the other things he's done. But that doesn't mean she won't acknowledge those horrible experiences as a factor, or that those good intentions exist. She's more than a little familiar with the various shades of moral gray.]

But he's a lot better ta have on your side when things go wrong, than against ya. The fact that he was willin' ta join, though...

[To be lead by someone else. To be lead by Scott and not the Professor...

Rogue shakes her head.]

I get the feelin' that tracin' your world's history would take a lot longer than the doctors would like me keepin' you up.

[And it's not that she's not interested. She is. But there wasn't much point in learning about a place she couldn't affect, besides satisfying her curiosity and... from what she could tell... causing her even more grief. It's a funny thought to think that she might be better off in the place where she's from right now. Life's strange.]

[selfhelp]

Tracing family history could probably keep us busy for hours, never mind the rest of the world... but thanks. I really don't have the energy to get into it right now.

[Which could be taken as "maybe someday" if she wants to try again, but he'll leave that up to her. He wouldn't blame her for wanting to leave it alone, that's for sure.

He pauses, grimacing slightly as he tries to settle back against the bed once more, before his expression turns serious.]

And thanks, um... for not freaking out at me. I know that kind of info won't be earning me any friends in the super hero community.

[touchofrogue]

[She cracks a wry smile.]

I'm the last person ta hold family against ya, trust me.

[And, because talking about Mystique is something that she doesn't like to do, no matter who she's talking with, and because the question's on her tongue to ask - do you know who my mother is? - and the answer is terrifying either way, because if he does, then he knows, and if she doesn't, then she might have to explain... Rogue just shifts focus a little, recovering her equilibrium.]

Wanda ain't half bad. [Of course she's... still a terrorist and brainwashed into loving Magneto instead of wanting to kill him in Rogue's time. So she goes on in that vein.] She just got hit with troubles a lot harder an' bigger an' faster than the rest of us. Her power's somethin' else. You've got a pretty good handle on it, from what I can see.

[selfhelp]

[He could say something to that - the only thing that's keeping her family relations from being as screwed up as his own is the ambiguous nature of his existence, period - but that would be a can of worms he really can't deal with right now. And besides just saying "hey, I know this about you", it would feel too much like rubbing it in her face.

Either way, he smiles at her comments about Wanda. He really knows very little about her early years, so hearing someone say something good about it is... nice. Really nice. Doubly so because it comes hand in hand with a compliment.]

I had help with that. It really makes a big difference.

[touchofrogue]

[Wanda had had "help" too - in the mental institution Magneto had put her in, and Rogue didn't recall that being too particularly helpful. Then again, she'd also had Xavier (another one of his secrets) and... Agatha Harkness.

Hmm.]

Help? Not with the Professor, I take it.

[Seeing as Billy didn't know he was a mutant.

...but then Rogue shook her head and leaned back a bit.]

Ya don't need ta tell me.

[selfhelp]

No, I've never been to the Institute. When I found out I had powers, the school wasn't really accepting new students.

[Didn't have Professor Xavier around to teach them, either, but she's better off not knowing that. Unless she's already assumed when he mentioned Scott- ...oh, oops.]

....Ah- actually, I read a bunch of self-help books. You'd be amazed at how useful they actually are at controlling special abilities.

[touchofrogue]

[An amused snort and an incredulous grin.]

You're kiddin' me, right?

[selfhelp]

No joke! That's where the chanting comes from. I envision myself making something happen, say it enough times to focus, and it happens. It's the only way I know how to cast spells, now.

and suddenly his username makes SO MUCH SENSE

[touchofrogue]

[Rogue just shook her head. She guesses she can see how that would help with Wanda's powers, although she'd... never had to focus that much when she had them. Maybe they were actually different powers? Or maybe it was easier for the next generation. Gawd, she hoped so.]

Whatever works, I guess.

bwahaha it's a well-kept little secret

[selfhelp]

[Or maybe you just need to be crazycakes to use them automatically, IT IS A MYSTERY~]

You should give it a try sometime. Maybe it'll help you.

[Because as far as he knows, her powers have always been... problematic. And that's just unfair.]

[touchofrogue]

[...did he seriously just? - well, it's not like her powers were a secret after that fight with Hulk, but - and then he said he'd heard of her before and -

Easy girl, don't take the guy's head off.

Extremely dryly:]

I'm pretty sure the powers of positive thinkin' would fall short on this one.

[And even if she wasn't, who'd be crazy enough to line up to be her test subjects?

She can understand the urge to want to help, but Gawd, there was no Bandaid for this, no quick fix. You might as well take a poker and jab it into an open wound to even suggest such a thing.]

[selfhelp]

It's just a thought.

[He shrugs and doesn't pursue it further, though; his knowledge of Rogue or her control over her powers is vague at best, but he does know that it's a sensitive subject. Not something a stranger should be bothering her about.

It's not like it's an overnight fix anyway, but he thinks it's worth consideration.]

[touchofrogue]

Mmm.

[She let it go, tilted her head and gave him a sidelong, assessing glance.]

Feelin' like ya could get some sleep now?

[selfhelp]

Yeah, I think so. I feel a little better now. [Keep secrets are kind of exhausting, and this week has thus far been full of surprises. For other people, that is. He relaxes against his bed, lifting a hand.] Thanks for coming to check on me. Means a lot.

1/2

[touchofrogue]

[She'd wave it off, but he's here on his own.

You're not on your own, Billy.

When you're a mutant, it's one step away from something important, something a lot like family, even if you're from another world.

So she allows herself a small smile.]

Try an' rest up.

[touchofrogue]

[And goes to stand, what he'd revealed spinning around in her head.

Magneto's grandson (related to a terrorist, Jewish). Mutant. Gay.

She shakes her head a little wryly.]

Dang, Billy. I can see why you've kept it a secret. It's like you're a poster boy for a hate crime waitin' ta happen.

[Oh. Wow. She really just said that out loud. Whoops.]

[selfhelp]

[That earns her a wide-eyed stare, unease crossing his expression rather than taking it in good humour. Wow, Rogue, wow. Was that revenge for the comment about her powers? Because ouch.]

...Yeah, thanks for pointing that out.

[touchofrogue]

[Aww, man. That halts her. And this would be the part where, if she was less self-conscious about her powers, she'd just sit down on the corner of his bed. But she is, so she doesn't, though her eyes soften a little. Okay, a lot.

And she does sit back down. And for once, she opens up. Just a little. Just - hopefully - enough.]

Hey. They had an actual hate poster out for me a few months ago in my world. A big military operation, just ta catch us - an' after that was over, it was a fight just ta get us back in school.

[Her tone turns wry, slightly self-mocking.]

I was never exactly the most popular gal in class, but this was somethin' else. The whispers would only stop ta be replaced by big, scared eyes, like I was gonna drain 'em right there, even though I'd been in that school for nearly two years without touchin' a one of them. So that's its own brand of a poster, right there.

[And she smiles softly.]

There's nothin' wrong with bein' who you are, an' it took guts to admit a lot of that ta me. I'm proud ta know you, Billy Kaplan.

[selfhelp]

[Well, he hadn't expected that. The hate poster business doesn't surprise him, mind you, because let's face it, he experienced the hell of high school firsthand every day. You don't need to be a mutant to feel the abuse, but it doesn't help, either.

Her advice makes his lips quirk a little, though he doesn't quite smile. That isn't exactly the problem, though it's nice to hear it said. A few moments after she sits back down, he sits up, brushing a hand through his hair and dragging the headband off his head along with it. He doesn't need a costume for this; this isn't Wiccan, this isn't the super hero.

Billy Kaplan was a very different person, once upon a time.]

I don't care what people think of me, really. I never have. Hiding it wasn't something I could do.

[Maybe that's why he's lousy at keeping his identity a secret; maybe that's why he's always calling for his teammates by name in battle instead of using codenames. Maybe he just doesn't want to have another self to show the world.

Why can't Billy Kaplan be the hero?]

I met her once... the Scarlet Witch, I mean. Before I knew who she was. Before I knew who I was. I used to hang out around the mansion after I got into fights at school.