The End of the Beginning

Content Warning: This page or the logs related to it contain graphic violence, blood and gore.

Content Warning: This page or the logs related to it contain the death of a significant character/NPC.

PHASE 1

PHASE 2

Part 6 of the Genosha Arc - The End of the Beginning

Dates run:	May 25-28, 2012
Run By:	Dex

Read the logs:	The End of the Beginning

“Lesson number one, animals. Resist, and it’s the person beside you that I’ll hurt. I’ll make you watch it, and then, I’ll hurt the person beside them. My brother doesn’t believe in torture, but he’s never been toe to toe with fanatics. I’ve watched men wire their children up with explosives and send them into a bunker to blow up allied troops.” He walked over to Doug and slammed the butt of the pistol into his throat, sending him to the ground as if pole-axed.

“I’ve seen what happens when they get their hands on good men. Or when they have a taste for genocide.” His face was ugly; brute with his words. “And if stopping that means grinding you into paste, I won’t even hesitate. Because you’re not people, and torturing you to death in front of each other won’t cost me a moment’s sleep.”

The attempted rescue of the captured mutants turns out to be an ambush, and while many captives break free, they are replaced by many of their would be rescuers. Now those freed are the hunted, while those captured face a future of torture and humiliation, as Genosha attempts to break them into submission.

Cast

Infiltration Team 1/Safehouse: Cypher, Deadpool

Infiltration Team 2: Daytripper, Storm, Callisto, Grasshopper

Infiltration Team 3: Gambit, Jubilee, Scarlet Witch

Infiltration Team 4: Bishop, The White Queen, Tarot, Maverick

Distraction Team 1: Cyclops, Meltdown, Hamster, Bevatron, Pyro

Distraction Team 2: Angel, Firestar, Polaris, Siryn, Cannonball

Prison Team 1: Phoenix, Legion, Husk, Hubba, Marrow

Prison Team 2: Nightcrawler, Catseye, Blink, Wildchild, Rocky

The Prisoners: Madelyne Pryor, Layla Miller, Korvus Rook'shir, Molly Hayes, Meggan Szardos, Marius Laverne, Garrison Kane, Carmilla Black, Angelo Espinosa, Adrienne Frost

Charles Xavier, Ambassador Bennett Creighten-Hayes, President David Moreau, Thomas Moreau, Magistrate Braddock, Tam Anderson, Genoshan Magistrates, Rachel Kinross, Genegineer, Sasha Ryan, Val Cooper, Fred Duncan, David Langstrom, Nick Fury

Timing

May 25-28, 2012

Plot Summary

With the information collected by X-Force, at the cost of one of their team with Vanessa disappearing during her mission, plans were laid for the attack on the Genoshan Citadel and the rescue of the hostages. No-one had any illusions about the danger, with various farewell messages and instructions being left for friends and family before the teams departed.

With Doug and Wade in a safe house in Hammer Bay, providing team-wide communication, three infiltration teams moved in first: the first team, consisting of Marie-Ange, North, Emma, and Bishop, headed towards the power plant with the task of cutting the power; the second team, made up of Wanda, Jubilee, and Remy, moved in on the security room inside the Citadel; and the third team, namely Amanda, Nico, Ororo, and Callisto, headed for the prison complex in a stolen ambulance. As part of the distraction team, Scott, Lex, Jean-Phillipe, John, and Tabby attacked the gates, while Warren, Lorna, Sam, Angelica, and Terry provided air support. Two more teams of rescuers infiltrated the prison; Jean, Paige, Haller, Vance, and Sarah M. in one group and Kurt, Catseye, Kyle, Dori, and Clarice on the other.

At first, everything went to plan. With the three prison teams in place, Emma's group cut the power, the signal to go in and begin the rescues. But the power did not remain off - within seconds, a back up system was operational and it became clear that things were going horribly wrong. Both small infiltration teams were attacked by Magistrates, with only Emma and Bishop escaping from the power plant and Wanda the sole escapee from the security bunker. The aerial team found themselves outnumbered and outgunned as the heavy combat helicopters descended on them, while Scott's team, without their aerial support, began to be overwhelmed by hidden ground forces. Not even the safe house was safe, with Doug sacrificing his freedom for Wade, who threw himself out of the window and was barely saved by his overtaxed healing factor.

The first team of rescuers reached the cell block, freeing Meggan, Angelo, Kane, and Molly, while Kurt's team found Phillip Moreau; and Ororo's team managed to free Maddie, Marius, and Korvus. But then the ambushes began, with Nico and Callisto getting Maddie out and Marius and Korvus fleeing on their own while Amanda was taken down by the Magistrates and Ororo kept the Magistrates at bay as Callisto, Nico, and Maddie searched for an exit route. Kurt's team was ambushed as well, with only Catseye and Dori getting away and Betsy Braddock showed up with Magistrate reinforcements to interrupt Jean's group's rescue mission. Catseye appeared from the air ducts and evacuated Meggan and Molly, while only Angelo, Jean, and Kane managed to get away.

The aerial team was overwhelmed, with Sam taking off to rescue John and just Lorna and Warren remaining in the air to regroup. Of Scott's team, only Jean-Phillipe (reluctantly) escaped after Sam managed to grab John, while the others were taken down.

Angelo, Jean and Kane, disguised in stolen Magistrate uniforms, escaped through the sewers and headed for the pre-arranged rendez-vous, hoping that too hadn't been compromised. Jean-Phillipe, alone and on foot, ran into a bloodied Wade as he made for the safehouse, saving him from capture. Catseye, Meggan, and Molly escaped via the air ducts and found an ambulance to take, heading for the hills and out of Hammer Bay entirely. Sam and John dodged attack choppers in their flight from the Genoshan forces, crash landing briefly before continuing their escape on foot. Warren and Lorna continued their stand against the helicopters, fighting them off as long as they could before escaping themselves.

Meanwhile, the previously-escaped Artie, Jean-Paul, and Sooraya, hearing the chaos and hoping to find the rescue team, ran into Bishop, who had several soldiers following him, and they dispatched them together. Wade and Jean-Phillipe ran into trouble but were found by Matt, Fred, and Megan, who helped them out before they found a vehicle to take.

Late that night, the captured mutants were brought before President Moreau and his brother Thomas. As a demonstration of what would happen to them, Thomas Moreau put Rachel Kinross through the mutate process, which lead to her death by disintegratuion. Shocked and dismayed, the captured mutants were separated into two groups, those who would be shipped to Prenova and made mutates and those who would go on trial for crimes against Genosha.

Back in New York, Charles and the Genoshan ambassador had a brief meeting, where Charles was shown footage of Rachel's death and the capture of his people, shaking him to his core and for the first time causing him to doubt his Dream. A meeting of US law enforcement and political agencies - Fred Duncan of the FBI, Val Cooper of the Secret Service, Nick Fury of SHIELD and David Langstrom of the CIA - came to the depressing conclusion that there was little to be done to aid Xavier's people without causing an international incident. David Langstrom did, however, manage to get a degree of satisfaction, when the Genoshan Ambassador approached him with a proposal and Langstrom refused - and broke the other man's hand with a stapler.