dahliahsiao-blog

[dahliahsiao-blog]

Her mind was already going over the briefing that the Captain was giving. Processing the information, remembering names of her team and the duties they will each perform. It was almost as if she was back with her old squad. Brother and sisters in arms. Training, laughing, crying and growing together. Learning to be a single unit out in the field, fighting as one. Of course it was wishful thinking as no one was immortal or invinsible. War was a nasty bitch with Death as its eager lover. Watching as eyes lost thier light, blood staining the ground and hands. Loss gripping each soldier upon the return home. Dreams haunted by everything that had been seen. 

Sighing through her nose, Dahlia closed her eyes to clear away all unecessary thoughts as her mind delved into things that had nothing to do with what was currently going on. The past was in the past. Forever haunting at the wrong time or during dark dreams. Focusing on the voices around her, the red head caught part of the conversation when Hank was vouching for her along with everyone else chiming in. 

Keeping silent, the young woman made a mental note to thank him once it was all over since she had a feeling that her words toward the captain would not be as polite. Ever since gaining her voice back and becoming more....Sociable, to an extent, some of her remarks could get her in trouble if she was not careful. 

Dahlia tensed when everyone went on alert and exlaimed over seeing something approaching. Her ears caught the noise of approaching soldiers with their weapons. Craning her neck to get a better look, brows rising in surprise at the robots flying through the air. What else did this world have that made it much more different from her’s? With orders given out, the soldier within her surfaced once again as muscles tenses in anticipatation of the battle to come. To protect those that were being threatened. 

Being grabbed by Hank before he bounded off toward the gates of the school, Dahlia bit back a noise of surprise and annoyance knowing that even if she ran, she would not be able to make it there in time before the enemy arrived. Once set down, she grabbed the batons at her side and took an offensive stance right as Hank let out a bellowing roar that cause the hairs on the back of her neck to rise. 

Let them come...No one threatens her new home or her friends. 

@morphinemechanic

Group Tactics || Avenger, S.H.I.E.L.D., & X-Men

“We are here to protect civilians, Doctor,” Sam replied, “And your students. There’s no need for HOPE to get anywhere near the school.” He was pleased to see Skye again, and he was glad she’d done so well heading S.H.I.E.L.D. They needed more people like her. “Good to see you again, Agent,” he nodded to the young Inhuman, wondering if the title “agent” still applied. He nodded to Aeron, thankful she’d decided to join them as well.  “And Doctor McCoy, it is good to see you again. And Miss-?” he held out a hand to Dhalia. That only left.. “Grant Ward.” Sam locked eyes with the former-SHIELD agent. He hadn’t interacted with the man before, but he knew enough from SHIELD’s files to know the guy was no joke. “Glad to see you’ve decided to join us. Hopefully, this won’t be a problem?” Sam would not tolerate a betrayal. 

After introductions, Sam began the briefing, knowing that they didn’t have much time before HOPE arrived. “I’m sure you all know why we’re here. And I trust that you are all ready to fight for this cause- the defence and protection of our fellow citizens. Miss Johnson, Aeron, Ward, I’m counting on you to act as the first line of defense. Stop HOPE from approaching while the X-Men go in and I take them from above.” Sam hesitated. He wasn’t one for long, inspirational speeches, and he didn’t have time for one besides. He looked around at his fellow soldiers and grinned, “They may have more people, but we a much more skilled. And we have the moral high ground. So lets get out there and end these terrorists once and for all.”

He approached Hank after the SHIELD agents had dispersed. “Doctor, I trust the school had made some security updates since the last-” he paused, “Couple of explosions? Is there anyone there who can protect the perimeter- put up a shield… Just in case they have something we’re not expecting?” Sam was hoping it didn’t come to that, but he couldn’t predict what was coming.  There was a rumble, the sound of hundreds of feet, the sound machinery. Perhaps they had brought big guns or- “Shit-”

A fleet of Iron Man robots were approaching in the air, with ten lines of heavily armed HOPE agents on foot. The numbers were much larger than Sam had expected, not considering the Stark tech that HOPE had clearly stolen. There was irony in that, he knew, but now was not the time to berate HOPE on ethics. He doubted it would do any good anyway. “Sonofabitch-” Sam cursed under his breath, pressing down on his com. “Alright, Avengers. Change of plans. Skye, Ward, split up the soldiers. Break their lines. Aeron, see if you can take out those robots. The rest of us will deal with the soldiers on the ground. Be careful! We don’t know what other tech they may have acquired!”

@skye-isthelimit 

[dahliahsiao-blog]

She sat cross legged, near the stage where all hell broke loose, drumming her fingers on her knee. Chin cradled on the left hand that was propped up on the other knee. Dahlia hated herself at this point along with everyone else that she did not know. After what happened earlier, it threw her into a loop and left her feeling useless for the second time in the life that she had lived through. At this point, the soldier in her wanted to fight tooth and nail while another part of her wanted to just find a place to hunker down and be shut off from the world. Much like she had been before arriving in the strange land...Earth...universe. Whatever it was, it still bothered her. 

But there was still a duty to perform. Keep the only people that she knew safe while breaking noses of the very people that wanted to harm them.  This time....Dahlia was going to go down fighting until her last breath. 

One thing for sure, she had the batons again along with a stun gun. But she’d give up an arm and a leg for an actual weapon. There was only so much she could do at this point. Not like she was blessed with powers....An involuntary shudder shot through her body as the memories of being stuck in a lab resurfaced. Snorting, the red head stood up and stretched her arms above her head before finding a spot just behind the group she was going to work with. Henry was the only she knew in the rag tag group, everyone else...A stranger. An unknown. 

Pursing her lips, the woman shifted to stand close to Henry but with enough space to be out of the way. New people still bothered her and it would have set her on edge if it wasn’t for Henry. Dahlia was brought back to reality when a man gracefully landed before them. Sucking in a breath through her teeth, the soldier tensed and slowly relaxed when no one made a move, even more so as Henry addressed the flying man. Captain? I’ll have to remember his voice then when orders are given out while out there. 

@morphinemechanic

Group Tactics || Avenger, S.H.I.E.L.D., & X-Men

Post order: @falcon-captain, @skye-isthelimit, @savagescholar, @dahliahsiao, @morphinemechanic, @coldbloodedward

Location: Jean Grey School and surrounding city

Sam sat on top of a building, looking down at the chaos that the mutant activist had caused, the emergency vehicles and law enforcement speeding in and out, the cries coming from bystanders, and the faint rumbling that meant this destruction wasn’t over. HOPE was coming and they would stop at nothing to kill the remaining mutants in the city, the last safe hold at the Jean Grey school and those remaining on the streets. 

And that’s why he’d sent Quill off to the island. This was his city, the people he’d sworn to protect after Steve had vanished, and he would die before he allowed anything to happen to them. They would have to play this carefully, keep HOPE away from the school and away from the mutants and allies that had gathered at the rally, now trapped on school grounds. 

There weren’t enough of them to take on HOPE outright but he was hoping that the two young heroes he’d recruited would be able to change the playing field. Skye and Aaron would play huge roles in this fight and Sam had full confidence that the two would be fine. He wasn’t as sure, however, of Ward, or the young woman the Doctor had brought along. Sam didn’t like working with people without getting to know them first, and he knew Ward’s problems in the past…

“Come in?” 

His com buzzed. He’d met up with Skye earlier, but needed to meet up with the rest of the group to discuss plans. “Ms. Johnson, I’m headed out.” He’d sent out a message to Skye and Hank, hoping they would pass the message on. He stood up, leaving his post and look off, flying above the city and away from the explosion site. 

He landed, rather gracefully in his opinion, in front of the school, on the abandoned stage that had been home to a riot hours before. It was deserted now, non-stop like the rest of the city, and always changing. He looked at the group assembled there, black clad S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, uniformed X-Men, and Sam himself, in bright blue and red. An odd team, but a team nonetheless. “Thank you all for coming,” he started with a sigh, wondering where to begin.

@skye-isthelimit

[dahliahsiao-blog]

After a while, Dahlia started to tune in and out of all the speeches. It reminded her of Col. Bargine and his long winded speech during graduation from the academy. It put the entire class to sleep and the small numbers of the audience and startled everyone awake with his large exclamation at the end. Shifting slightly, the woman crossed her arms and glared down at her feet. The restlessness she had been feeling was coming back and her muscles tensed before she forced herself to relax and pay attention to her surroundings. With the possibility of danger, she had to be alert. Dahlia would feel guilty if she did not stop some brave idiot from rushing to the stage and proclaiming some anti-mutant shit. 

If she could, she would show the world that this was nothing. That there were far greater evils out there and she had seen them, fought them and nearly died. But this was not her world and those monsters did not exist here, but another kind did. Humans that were scared of changes, scared of those that are different. Fear caused people to change. 

A stranger appeared and approached Henry, Dahlia’s hands instantly went to the batons she was given and stared, prepared to tackle the woman. Just as quickly as she tensed, she relaxed upon seeing that everyone knew the woman and just arched a brow when the woman’s gaze was directed toward her. Huffing, she looked away and crossed her arms. Prepared to tune out everything else  and hope that it would end soon. Dahlia wanted to escaped into the forest near the school and find solace with a book before anything. She was till getting used to being around others and it drained her. Left her exhausted and irritated. Four years was not enough. 

Bang! 

That noise, that single noise snapped Dahlia out of her thoughts and put her on high alert. Even more so when Henry suddenly was near her, wrapping his large frame around her as another shot was fired. Eyes widened in shock as she stared up at him before he removed his jacket and leap off the stage to tackle the shooter. The bloodstains did not go unnoticed and anger boiled inside. Removing the batons from her sides, the woman gritted her teeth as she charged into the crowd following Rogue after Henry took down the first shooter. Dahlia shouldn’t be out on the move, not when there were others still on the stage that needed protection and yet she knew that they would most likely did not need that. Not when they could control their abilities (as far as she knew). Working through the crowd, batons flying at those that attempted to grab onto her, the soldier continued on until her eyes fell on Rogue moving Henry to safety to be treated. 

Having been beaten to the punch, the woman decided to turn back around and make sure that the twat canoes didn’t decide to swarm the stage and cause more damage. One innocent injured pissed her off, but if others ended up injured, there will be hell to pay. An arm wrapped around her neck after she kicked down a protester that attempted to club her with a sign and pulled her back, applying pressure to her windpipe. Gasping for air, the woman gripped the arm, digging her nails into skin and jabbed her right elbow into the solar plexus a few times until the pressure slackened. With the new found freedom, Dahlia twisted around and headbutted the assailant before backing away. Down the man went. Spitting at him, she grabbed one of the fallen batons and quickly made her way back just as the sirens drowned out everything. Even Rogue’s words in an attempt to calm everyone below. 

Growling, she glared down at the rioters and spat at them. Not giving a single fuck right now. If any tried to climb up, she would gladly knock them down. “Cowardly shitbags.” 

@ravenmystiqued

The Second M-Day | Mutants

moveslikelightning :

thenamesrogue :

savagescholar :

ravenmystiqued :

dahliahsiao :

Mission 3 Team: @savagescholar, @thenamesrogue, @moveslikelightning, @wanda-thescarletwitch, @dahliahsiao, @ravenmystiqued Starting Location: Jean Grey School

What had they gotten themselves into?

Them. Not her. Hank and his loyal following of sheep.  What a disjointed crowd they were. X-Men, Avengers, whoever the hell the human Hank had invited along… Mystique was not pleased. That being said, she hadn’t been to the opening of the press conference. But as much as she hated to admit, she wanted to know what the people on that stage had to say. 

It would be so much easier to not care. But she sat on the subway there with her phone in her hand, waiting for the live video to load. Not that she expected anything to happen. And yet, they once again surprised her. Not Hank, of course. He seemed to only spout the same tired rhetoric. But the video managed to stop buffering just as Erik’s son took to the stage and she got the opportunity to watch Pietro speak some semblance of truth. 

“Good for him,” Raven thought with a smile. She laughed aloud as the crowd erupted. Reporters shouted questions, cameras flashed. The other people on the train shot her death glares. Raven ignored them. She had much more important things to give her time to. 

Now she was wishing she’d been there. That was something she would haven liked to see in person. As the train screeched to a halt at her stop, Raven was on her feet, shoving past the other people to make her way to the door, slipping through before it had completely opened, looking for all the world to be a business woman late to a meeting. As soon as she was on the street she saw the crowds that had gathered, she pushed her way to the front of the crowd, only stopping to politely threaten an officer who tried to stop her before joining the crew on the stage.

“What did I miss?” she asked Hank, not waiting for a reply. She shot Dahlia a look that was half incensed, half questioning. No one on the stage had managed to take the podium and answer questions, and so, Raven thought, with her sudden arrival, she would do the job none of them had. Clear things up.

“Your father would be proud,” Raven murmured to Pietro as she passed, a smug smile on her face. She hadn’t seen the Maximoff twins in a while and she was surprised to see them looking so… normal. Surprises were apparently in abundance today.

Cameras flashed as she stepped up to the podium. What did Pietro mean? Do the other Avengers share his beliefs? Who are you? Will the Jean Grey School comment..? Raven waited patiently, her red hair pulled back in a ponytail, bright blue blazer, tan skin… “I am here to speak on behalf of all mutants. The individuals standing here behind me mean well, but they are misguided in their beliefs. To answer your questions, Mr. Maximoff meant that if HOPE and it’s supporters continue to round up mutants like animals, we will be forced to act. I can not say for sure if the Avengers share his beliefs because we do not speak for them. The Jean Grey School will not comment but will continue to provide a safe, education driven environment for the children and teens you’re currently murdering in cold blood. As for who I am,” She paused, “That is not a question easily answered. Let’s just say that I have personal ties to this movement, this election, and to the mutants being affected by this madness.”

Her voice remained calm, the usual cutting edge gone. She spoke like a scripted politician, although the teleprompter wasn’t on. Of course, there was something ominous about her deadpan that she liked and she could tell the crowds could sense it. They had fallen silent. 

“I speak now directly to the citizens of the United States. If you elect Mr. Graydon Creed, you will watch from your couches as the country you love crumbles.Because, my friends, today you will know the truth. HOPE is dangerous. The papers won’t tell you this, but they are not simply rounding up mutants. They are killing them. Experimenting on them. We’ve seen history and we know how this ends. I suggest you choose your side wisely, because if you do not…. You will pay the price. The rights of citizens are being stripped away and if that happens, if you allow this to happen, as Mr. Maximoff said, an eye for an eye. You are scared of mutants in the streets? Of riots and protests? You know nothing of fear. Not yet.” She straightened her jacket, “You know the facts. And for those of you who are too ignorant to see the truth and open your eyes, I will open them for you. I am not afraid to spill blood, to stand up for those who you hurt by blindly following Creed and his fear-mongering ways. And many of you will say that if what I say is true, I am no better than him. Well, of course I am no better than him. But instead of hiding behind a mask of mock-kindness and lies, I will stay true to my word. If you let us die, I will personally see that you, quite literally, burn.” 

Mystique smiled as the crowd erupted. Cheers, threats… The questions began and Raven called over the noise, “Dr. Henry McCoy will take your questions now,” before stepping away from the cameras. “Something had to be done, Hank,” she sighed, putting an arm on his shoulder, “You were taking far too long.”

He was so proud of Rogue. She had grown and developed so much over the years. Starting out as a runaway and a villain, she had matured into the wonderful leader he saw today. When he had gone and ran away from responsibility, Anna Marie had stepped up to look after the school and all its students. In that regard he had let Charles down. There was still conflict within Hank about whether or not the decision he made four years ago had been the right one.

Hank felt his stomach sink as Pietro spoke. With each word, it sank further and further. This sort of hostile rhetoric was not going to win the public over to their side. Obviously he could not have stopped the speedster from reaching the podium even if he had tried, but the super scientist wished that there was something he could do to counteract him. Sadly, showing that they were not in fact all presenting a united front for mutantkind could be used as fodder by HOPE and the media. All he could do was shoot the other man a stern look as he returned to his place in line.

When the geneticist thought that the situation could not get any worse, he found out he was so very wrong. A red-headed woman in a blue business suit took to the stage. Henry instantly recognized her as Mystique, despite the lack of blue skin. She had certainly taken her sweet time getting there. Raven was also a variable factor. Would she improve or worsen the situation? he wondered to himself. Her words were biting, but held truth, as much as the mutant physician may have been reluctant to admit. He could have done without the talk of bloodshed, but that was who Raven was. This he already knew.

“You merely said that which you felt needed to be stated, Raven. I cannot fault you for that,” he whispered in return as he passed by her on his way back to the podium. He had barely opened his mouth to respond to the barrage of questions being flung his way when a shot rang out over the crowd. Hank’s enhanced agility saved his life, just barely. A fraction of a second’s delay in his reaction time would have resulted in the bullet hitting his vitals. Instead it hit him right below the collar bone, passing through and over his heart. Turning to his companions, Hank dashed towards Dahlia, purely out of instinct. His head swam and he stumbled, but he grit his sharp teeth, working past the pain. Beast barely managed to wrap his large frame around the time traveler before another shot was fired. This one ripped through his side, further ruining his nice suit.

There came cries of, “Down with mutants! Down with the Illuminati!” from among the screams of the panicked press. Tearing off his jacket, he sprang out into the chaos. The azure acrobat was running purely on adrenaline now and it drove him to pick out one of the shooters, tackling the person. Seizing the rifle from their hands, Hank pulled out the magazine, flinging it and the firearm aside. His arm reeled back in preparation to slash into his assailant with his claws before stopping himself. Not now, not ever. He could not take another person’s life. Pain flooded back into his body. Darkness consumed his field of vision as the bestial hero blacked out. @thenamesrogue

As soon as Rogue had gotten back in her seat, Pietro was there, preparing to speak. Rogue half-rose again to stop him. This wasn’t supposed to be a free-for-all speech time! If it had been, she would have picked better people to speak in front of the press, and she would not have chosen Pietro and Wanda, two people she hardly knew. But she sat down, hoping, praying, it would be okay. But it wasn’t. In fact, within a few words, Pietro brought her entire speech crumbling down. “No!” she shouted, just after Pietro said “an eye for an eye.” She stood again, and was about to speak–when Mystique (Mystique! Of all people! Why didn’t they just bring Magneto to the press conference to represent all mutants?!) At least she didn’t look like herself. 

But Mystique was right. Something had to be done. And as Mystique finished her speech and turned around, smiling with goddamn pleasure at all she had done to wreck everything, Rogue, who was lucky enough to be standing nearby, raised a fist and punched her mother–or aimed to. Certainly not with everything she had, not even close, as that would kill her. Not even enough to knock her off her feet. But enough to send a message. Rogue began to say something to her mother, to accuse her of ruining everything, when the shots were fired.

Mystique was pushed out of the forefront of Rogue’s attention, and the Rogue quickly refocused on Hank, who was soaring over the crowds toward the shooter–and losing a lot of blood while he went. Rogue followed, flying out over the crowd. It was an easy choice between going after the shooter and looking out for Hank, especially since she was sure Mystique or Pietro would catch up to the shooter later. So she picked up the furry blue mutant (though it was awkward, as his body was larger than the length of her arms), and carried him through the crowd.

One couldn’t fault Rogue with being unprepared. While an ambulance sitting nearby would have sent a negative message, a tattooed teenager wasn’t so bad. It was Ink–the Jean Grey’s School very own healer. He wasn’t a mutant, incidentally, but he lived at the school and was posted just outside the crowd, ready to heal. Rogue laid Hank on the floor in front of Ink, who immediately went to work, and then she left to rejoin the crowd.

Now to try to mollify the crowd. An impossible task, if there ever was one. Looking first for Pietro and Mystique, Rogue then made her way to the front of the stage again, standing in front of the microphone. “Please calm down!” she called over the shouts against her. Thankfully the person with the gun was gone, but she had to duck a shoe. “Jean Grey School does not agree with the statements of the last two people who spoke!” Rogue asserted, shooting a glare at the other two, if they were there. “Please–”

But then the police arrived, and the sirens drowned her out.

@moveslikelightning

Pietro smirked in response to Hank’s stern look, tempted to make some sort of smart-assed comment, but his attitude quickly changed when Raven spoke, his smirk disappearing. 

“I’m…not sure,” he admitted quietly to his sister.

Now that the moment had passed, he wasn’t sure how he felt about making his father proud as Raven said hewould have, despite having spent a lot of time in the past trying to do just that. Since he’d joined the Avengers years ago, he’d been doing everything he could to not be compared to Magneto. After his impulsive speech however, he wasn’t sure if it was the result of having such beliefs drilled into him for so long, or because he really thought that way himself. Maybe he was like his father after all and the time he’d spent trying to be good was him in denial?

He stayed silent as Raven spoke, half listening as he tried to work out whether or not his words really were his true feelings or not. He was certain however, that Hank was not the only one onstage who wasn’t happy with what he’d said, considering Rogue had been one of the few who had actually stayed and continued doing good while everyone else was off doing their own things. He’d likely just helped destroy all her hard work of trying to show they were there to help.

He eventually turned to speak to Wanda again, but froze as Raven spoke about HOPE killing and experimenting on mutants. His hands clenched into tight fists. He hadn’t known they were doing that. The speedster could feel his anger rising again and it showed in his expression as he struggled not to race off to find the murders right then.

“I meant it. All of it,” he told Wanda, knowing this time that it was true. “I…" 

A loud noise cut him off. A gunshot. Everything suddenly seemed even slower than it normally did to him as he turned to look. Hank managed to save himself, barely, and yet he still made his way over to protect the girl Pietro was unfamilar with. There was another shot, protest cries from the crowd and Hank, shortly followed by Rogue, lept into the crowd.

Pietro wasn’t quite sure what to do, despite what he’d said to his twin. Hank had already jumped on the shooter, so he couldn’t really go after the man himself. He wished he’d beaten Hank there though; his anger at the anti-mutant people was stronger than ever. He continued to restrain himself though, used to following orders. 

”…what do we do?“ he asked Wanda as Rogue’s attempts at crowd control were drowned out by sirens.

@wanda-thescarletwitch

This was becoming a revolving nightmare and Wanda could see the danger coming a mile away. It was as if every minute that passed was becoming more tense than the last, by the time Raven had mentioned their father would have been proud of Pietro, Wanda had no idea what to think,but her urge to flee like the one she’d had when she was younger returned. It made her insides hurt to think about how someone she’d tried so hard to distance herself from was being brought up because of her brother following his instincts. 

“This is getting bad, Pietro”  Wanda replied looking around as she felt the dread of chaos looming. She at her very core was chaos incarnate. If they wanted it she would give it, but Wanda wasn’t risking her improved reputation for a group of idiots that were sharing one brain cell among the lot of them. 

 Raven’s further comments had disturbed her more than her father being brought up.  The killing. The experiments. The ignorance of man being the thing to dictate their actions was a dangerous weapon and Wanda recalled running in the past, because of that ignorance. She had been lucky, but it was clear other’s weren’t so lucky. “I know you did. I don’t blame you” She admitted. The revelation was infuriating. She spent her life trying to be a hero and forgetting her past which basically amounted to being a terrorist. Yet, the words that hit her ears made her absolutely furious. 

Wanda went to speak again before the shots rang out. The dark haired woman ducked out of instinct as the familiar red glow started to emit from her hands. She had to control herself, but Wanda was on high alert and ready to fight if need be. The chaos she had thought about moments before had become a reality. Hank had been shot and the crowd was erupting into a frenzy. Within minutes people wold be trampled in attempts to advance or run. There wasn’t much they could do now except run or become proactive, but then that would risk becoming a bigger problem. With Wanda’s emotions the way they were in the moment, she had no idea how long her control would last before the sheer strength of her abilities bit her in the ass. Her anger over the situation though was not helping and soon her Hex magic grew again within her hands, just teetering to a point where it could be used.  

She looked to her twin, watching the madness out of the corner of her eye. Seeing her brothers face calmed her slightly. This wasn’t who she was. She was a hero and she should never forget the fact, despite her judgement being clouded. At his question Wanda looked around. 

“We have two choices.We stop this or we run? Rogue is going to be pissed. “Wanda replied muttering the last comment under her breath. “No matter what they’re going to make us look bad. I don’t want to run, but what are our options here?”

Wanda honestly had no clue what to do. Running would wipe out everything she had done to be seen differently, but staying might also cause the same reaction out of her. There was no right answer, especially as the riot formed. 

@dahliahsiao

[dahliahsiao-blog]

I love this show.

[dahliahsiao-blog]

She did not feel comfortable being around a large number of people and it was making her antsy. Granted, it did take four years of getting used to being around other people that were living and breathing...And with abilities that they were born with. This should be nothing and yet, it was overwhelming. Dahlia Hsiao wanted nothing more than to find solace with a book in her hands and not be in sight of prying eyes as those next to her were to give speeches or however these things went. The red head was just there to offer extra security should the protesters feel brave enough to start something, even then...What more could she offer? Compared to the gifted students and teachers, she was normal. Just a soldier. 

Said soldier stood straighter, hands behind her back when Henry shot her a look while he spoke. Black and blue eyes shifted away out of embarrassment...no, she had to look away because of uncertainty. Unsure on how she felt about everything and everyone around her. Yes, the school and its students, along with faculty were important to her due to the fact that they were kind enough to nurse her back to health and update her on the events of the world. A part of her still whispered that none of it was real and it was all just some dying illusion. Final hope for companionship. 

Sighing, Dahlia focused once more to pay attention to both the speeches and the people. When the bombings were brought up, it made her blood boil in anger. To think that people openly attacked children all because they were different, because they were afraid. How utterly pathetic of them to commit such acts. Jaw set and eyes reflecting the anger that burned inside, she secretly hoped that someone would try something. If they did...They were going to be in a world of hurt after she finished with them. Perhaps she should ask for a small team so that HOPE could be taken out quickly just be done with all this tail chasing that seemed to be the theme with current events. 

That would also be a terrible idea...Some of these politicians need to get their heads out of their asses along with the ones that can’t handle people that are different. Dahlia had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from grinning as Quicksilver spoke. Boy, did he have balls. The purists must be pulling their hairs out by the handfuls judging by how this press conference was going. 

Shifting her feet slightly so that she could fall into a more comfortable parade’s rest, Dahlia glanced at Henry and the others nearby that might just end up speaking or were just there for support of those that were speaking before looking over the crowd. Scowling at the protesters. One thing for sure, she was going to protect the school and the people within it till her final breath. It will be her way of thanking them for putting up with her stubborn and ignorant ass. 

@ravenmystiqued

The Second M-Day | Mutants

moveslikelightning:

thenamesrogue:

savagescholar:

Mission 3 Team: @savagescholar, @thenamesrogue, @moveslikelightning, @wanda-thescarletwitch, @dahliahsiao, @ravenmystiqued Starting Location: Jean Grey School

Rogue had recommended that they hold a press conference. Matters were getting out of hand with the bombing, disappearances, protests, and all the other anti-mutant activity. This Senator Creed character made Dr. Henry McCoy especially uncomfortable. As the saying went, the more things changed, the more they stayed the same. The founding and former member of the X-Men had been dealing with these issues for most of his life. Even before he was blue and furry, his mutation was evident and the subject of bullying.

Quite crowd had gathered to hear them speak. All the major and local news outlets were there: CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, Daily Bugle, New York Times. Hank was pleased that so many had shown up to hear what they had to say, but he was even more pleased with those who had chosen to stand beside them in support. Wanda and Pietro had kindly accepted to appear when Rogue reached out to them. Dahlia was there to show support of a non-mutant human as well as for… additional security. Even Raven had shown up, after much convincing from Beast and her daughter. They would show the world that mutants would not submit to tyranny and simply die out. Mutants were few these days, but they were strong together.  

The super scientist stood in the mirror and adjust with a nod to ed his tie. In preparation for the press conference, he had finally found the time to trim his hair and beard. With a nod to the group gathered with him, they started their procession onto the stage. He heard a number of audible gasps as he walked out and stood at the podium. Hank had expected this. After having not appeared in public for four years, it may come to the surprise of the media that he was still alive.

“Thank you all for attending this conference today. As the majority of you likely recognize, I am Dr. Henry McCoy, formerly of the X-Men,” the blue gentleman began. He motioned to the group of allies standing behind him. “My compatriots and I come before you all today, not as X-Men or as Avengers, but as mutants and those that stand in solidarity with them.” Hank shot Dahlia a glance, a faint smile creeping across his face. “It may surprise some to discover that mutant humans in fact remain a minority on this planet. We number fewer than two hundred in total. As is the case with many minorities, we have often faced persecution in the past. Today is no different. We are constantly threatened with bodily harm and the infringement of our human rights,” he concluded, giving slight pause.

“On that note, I would like to introduce and cede the pulpit a dear friend and headmistress of the Jean Grey School, Anna Marie Darkholme.” Stepping aside, Henry gestured to the woman in question and fell back into line with the others. @thenamesrogue

They were all gathered to her her speak. Her. Anna Marie Darkholme, as Hank had introduced her, Rogue noted. Which hadn’t been her plan, but whatever, it was out now. She supposed everyone ought to know her real name by now. Her last name, her real one, she knew, was at least still her own. Rogue had bigger problems. Like the fact that the entire mutant community was relying on her to do… what were they relying on her to do? Certainly they wanted different things. Some of them probably wanted her to join the fight, be like Mystique and kill HOPE members and those that persecuted them. Others probably wanted a speech that tried to calm everyone down and kept the peace for just a little while. Rogue, if she was true to herself, could do neither or those things. 

Still, that didn’t mean she wasn’t about as nervous as a longtailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. Closing her eyes, Rogue took a deep breath, picturing Charles Xavier in front of her. She would try to do right by him and everything he had done for her. But she knew him. Instead of asking what would Charles Xavier do, he would want her to do what she believed was right. What would the best version of Rogue do?

So she opened her eyes, stood up, and made her way to the stage. “Hello,” she said, reaching up to adjust the microphone slightly. She was careful due to the super-strength she had absorbed from a student, in case this got ugly. “My name is Anna Marie, otherwise known as Rogue of the X-Men. Real quick–let’s address my past, because Ah know some folks are gonna drag it up. Ah was a part of the Brotherhood when Ah was a kid, that’s true. But thanks to Charles Xavier, Ah was given the opportunity to change and do good for the world, and that’s what Ah did. And Ah’ve kept doin’ it since–which is one of the things Ah wanted to talk to y’all about today.

“Though Ah’m originally from Mississippi, Ah’ve been a resident of New York for about 10 years. And durin’ all that time, Ah’ve been an X-Men, someone that used to be called a superhero–” There were some boos from the crowd at the word. “Now, Ah understand ya’lls bitterness and anger and hurt. Ah’ve felt it too. Want to know why? Because Ah was there with you. You know me. You remember. These past four years, you’ve still seen the X-Men’s jet flyin’ over the world, you’ve seen me flyin’ over New York, tryin’ to help you out even if Ah was the only one left. Don’t you remember? The woman with the shock of white hair knockin’ out those monsters, the hostile aliens? All on my own, Ah still persevered, and Ah nearly died so many times for all of you. Look it up, it’s in the news still, if HOPE hasn’t gotten rid of any traces of me.” There were some murmurs from the crowd at the mention of HOPE, always politically charged. “Why am Ah tellin’ you this? Ah’m tellin’ you because Ah need you to listen to me about something very important. And Ah think Ah’ve earned your ear. Will y’all listen to me?”

Rogue waited. This was a risk, giving the power over to the crowd. Immediately, there were some shouts of “No!” from the protest groups that had been allowed in (under the guise of being a news organization). But then she heard a “Yes!” And then another one. And another one. And though the shouts of “No!” were loud, the shouts of “Yes!” were loud too. 

So Rogue went on. “Here’s the thing, y’all!” She had to shout over the group. “Ah’m the headmistress of a school of children. Did you hear we were bombed? Children were bombed. Bombed by people who hate mutants, people who persecute those who are different than themselves. Does that sound familiar? Isn’t that somethin’ this country has always tried to fight against? But Ah’m standin’ here today and telling you it’s gettin’ worse and worse. You’ve seen the news. ‘Mutants are a ticking time bomb; sooner or later it will explode and innocent humans will be harmed.’ But folks, we’re not bombs, we’re human beings, too. We’re human beings with mutated genes who see our differences being treated like those differences turn us into monsters. Is it any wonder why there are protests? We are children, we are adults who are trying to hold down steady jobs to feed our families–and, once in a while, when we have the strength and training to, we are X-Men who try to protect the world with our abilities. And yet there is talk about putting us into camps, there are attempts to kill us, there are talks of plans “to stop the explosion before it ever occurs.” That’s a preemptive strike against innocent people, y’alls. What would you say if someone set off a bomb in your house just because you owned a gun?

“That’s why–” Here Rogue took a deep breath. “Ah am here to announce that Ah will not be registering with HOPE. And Ah will not be forcing mah students or any other mutants to do the same.” That started people talking, and Rogue had to raise her voice to be heard. “Ah will encourage peaceful resolution of this matter, but Ah will not allow mah students to be arrested, and Ah will remain at the school to protect mah students and the rest of New York. Any person, human or mutant or otherwise, as always, will be welcome at the Jean Grey School, if they are seeking help. That is all.”

@moveslikelightning

It felt weird to Pietro to be on the stage, standing with Beast and Rogue who had been his enemies, more than they’d been his allies. Mystique, he had worked with a bit. Wanda, obviously, he’d worked alongside almost every time he went somewhere new. The other woman…he wasn’t sure he knew at all. 

Normally, at least back when he had been in the Brotherhood, he was hiding in the crowd, or somewhere else nearby, waiting to do Magneto’s bidding. The situation was both very familiar, but also very different. The problem was the same: anti-mutant people want them to become more or less like their slaves with their names and powers recorded, or they had to go. HOPE was new and those who agreed with them were getting a bit extreme; bombing a school. 

‘I bet that if it was a school of homo-sap… non-powered humans, they’d execute the person responsible, or lock them away for life.’ he thought as he watched Rogue speak. He couldn’t help but wonder what Magneto would do if he was around; he wouldn’t stand for what had happened, that’s for sure. He’d take the attack personally, despite his dislike towards Charles Xavier’s way of dealing with people like HOPE. 

Words do nothing was one thing he’d learned over the years. Xavier’s speeches had never solved the problem. Magneto’s actions often scared the anti-mutant people into stopping, at least for a while… He’d been trying to avoid it, and be good like the Avengers and X-Men, but he was starting to think, at least at this point, that it was not the way to go.

Regardless of whether or not he’d been invited to speak, one Rogue was done he immediately took her spot at the microphone, speaking over those in the crowd, who’d gotten worked up again by his small display of power.

“For those of you who don’t know: I am Quicksilver. I bet a lot of you who are whining recognise me by my outfit,” he said, gesturing to his green, lightning bolt decorated outfit. “And my former association with a certain man you like to refer to as a terrorist.”

He cleared his throat before continuing. 

“I’ve been trying my best over the years to turn my back on the bad things I did, mostly while working with that man. I was even an Avenger for a while. Now, I’ve done a lot of thinking about all this and I’m starting to realise something: when it comes to those who are different, most of you totally forget your morals and are even willing to try and murder children. I was considering staying out of all this crap, but you attacked a school. You want us to pick a side? You helped pick mine.”

Clenching his hands into fists, Pietro tried not to let his anger at the situation get him too worked up. 

“I will not sit around while you hurt innocent mutants,” No, not mutants. “The Homo-Superior. Try it again and you will pay. Eye for an eye.” He turned then and went back to his spot, standing with his arms crossed.

@wanda-thescarletwitch

Something about this entire situation seemed like a bad idea. However, Wanda assumed everything that was happening around here was in reality a terrible a idea. This amount of order being tossed around seemed like a bad idea and while she needed some order in her life to control all of the chaos, this wasn’t what she had in mind. There was absolutely no reason for any of them to register with HOPE. It was bound to lead to trouble and the possibility of mass causalities in the long run. Wanda didn’t even need to be aware of probabilities to know this spelled trouble. 

It was why she had agreed to be part of this. 

The dark haired woman by definition was a mutant and yet she had spent most of her youth fighting against them. She wasn’t an X-Men, but it seemed like for now this was where she needed to be. Joining other’s like herself in support for the decisions they were to make. Wanda internally hoped it was the same one’s she had made for herself.  She had made the wrong decisions in the past because she was lost, because she was blinded by the thing’s that had happened in the past and because she was young and foolish. Wanda still felt lost sometimes, but she didn’t feel foolish.  As she was with the others it didn’t seem like a wrong decision. 

As Hank introduced Rogue, Wanda took her place next to her brother. She at times wondered if they just agreed to do thing’s together because it was what they both wanted or because the idea of them being separated was something Wanda had a hard time bearing . 

She hadn’t expected the introduction, nor did she expect Rogue to make a speech. Was this sort of thing necessary? Humans were only going to hear what they wanted to, none of them ever wanted a taste of truth. They didn’t want to know that the big bad threat out there wasn’t real.It would then mean they had to put their anger towards something else.Many of the group standing on stage were former Brotherhood members that Wanda wasn’t surprised to hear the negative comments ringing out though the crowd. Ever since leaving them she had spent all of her time trying to right the wrongs she had done in the past. She was a villain, a terrorist, someone who at times had tried to unmake existence, but that wasn’t her anymore. Was that what people saw though?

At the sounds of negativity throughout the crowd, Wanda couldn’t help, but narrow her eyes in the field where they were coming from. Hero or not, she didn’t live where her actions were meant to be dictated by someone else. If this were the past she would have made them eat their words, but Wanda wasn’t out to undo her hard work or discredit Rogue’s words. The anger on her face though seemed to grow when Rogue mentioned the students being bombed. Many of them were children and that didn’t sit right with her. Children were a weakness for her and a trigger when it came to her emotions. She had to keep them in check though despite what was bubbling below the surface. Wanda worked so hard to be in control that she couldn’t undo anything in public like this. 

 How could humans be so needlessly cruel though? It was the kind of thing she had tried to escape back home. People turn to terror after not understanding .truth. She had been on the wrong side of that, so she knew the score. The support that rang out through the crowd as well seemed to be the only thing calming her nerves as well as Rogue’s final declaration. She had been on the same page as the other mutant and she didn’t regret where she was standing. 

As soon as her twin opened his mouth though, Wanda had no idea what to expect. He was just as angry as she had been only his anger had came out. Her expression was unchanged as she watched him. Wanda had a good poker face. She completely agreed with Pietro, but this wasn’t making Rogue or the rest of them look good. This whole thing was done with an attempt to be civil, but fighting word were being thrown around and there was going to be a fallout. Wanda could see it coming immediately. This wasn’t going to go well.

As he went back to his spot Wanda looked over at her twin. “What was that about? “ She replied in a hushed voice so no one else would hear. “ I agree with you, but that wasn’t the place” She added. 

It seemed like yesterday when Wanda had no control over her actions and at least she was able to have better control now. The group did not need thing’s going eve further. 

@dahliahsiao

[dahliahsiao-blog]

Timeless || Dahlia & Hank

With a sharp intake of breath, Dahlia Hsiao awoke to find that the music she had been listening to had ended and that the sun had begun its descent to allow its sister to rise. Hues of red and orange painted over the blue sky. It was a welcoming sight for the woman in the four years of living at the Jean Grey school, a sign that kept her believing that none of it was a dream or a hallucination. It was very much real. Much like the tree she had climbed up and settled on one of its thicker branches to finish reading a book from the library. 

Even though she would much rather be running laps around the school and going through the exercises that were drilled into her, the red head wanted to know more about the world she was in. It was similar to her Earth but at the same time it was not. None of the horrors her world experienced happened in this one. The human race still thrived, even the gifted ones and there was so much history she needed to read up on. Music to listen to and movies to watch. All in due time, for it took the entire four years for her to even recover from the severe malnutrition she had been suffering from upon her arrival. 

Being around others made her uncomfortable. Having been alone left her silent, barely speaking a word, save for the occasional acknowledgement, denial or short answer. No more than one sentence left her lips. As if she was afraid of the spell being broken, for no matter how many times she awoke in the room she was given, there was a small part of her that whispered in her mind. Telling her that everything was a lie, a hallucination before she died. Bleeding out on the field while the creature she was fighting dug beneath her skin to remove her very soul. 

Dahlia shuddered at the thought and carefully shifted her body so that she could easily slide off the branch and drop onto the ground in a crouch. Already knowing that the book had fell from her hands when she fell asleep, as it always did. Locating the book, she carefully picked it up and brushed away the dirt while inspecting it. Seeing that it was unharmed, the red head carefully tucked it under arm and proceeded to make her way back to the school before it got dark. No need to worry anyone. Removing the earbuds from her ears, she stuffed them with the ipod into the pocket of her hoodie, making a mental note to return the portable player to the student that was kind enough to lend it to her after loading it up with different kinds of music, even though she was preferring classical at this point. 

As she got closer to the school, movement caught her eyes and Dahlia slowed her walk until she stopped. Someone was outside. A student or a teacher? Visitors rarely came to the school these days...A current event she needed to read up on sometime soon. Curious, Dahlia decided to start walking again in order to find out but with caution. 

@savagescholar

[dahliahsiao-blog]

Send “📚” and I will flip to a random page in a book and use the first line of dialogue I see as a starter.

[dahliahsiao-blog]

There was something about going for a light jog around the school grounds that helped her process new information, which she had been doing for the past four years. After waking up in a room that was set up for medical purposes, it has been a roller coaster ride from that moment until present day. Seeing for the first time in years, not having to fight for her life and being around others. Granted, it did take some time to get used to being around powered beings but it was the history of what happened in this...strange universe that boggled her mind. It was hard to get by, especially with her condition and reluctance to speak, but two of the four years was spent recovering and gaining her strength back. Going through exercises that had been drilled into her during basic training, pushing her body to the limit and getting reprimanded for it. At least it stopped the hallucination, the voice that nagged her every waking moment but it did not bring about her own voice. Panting, the red head slowed to a stop and started the cool down stretches before making her way back into the school and attempt to locate Hisako so that she could return the latest book she borrowed. Finishing with her arms above her head Dahlia sighed, walking over to the hand towel she placed on one of the many benches before jogging. On top of it was said book. With it in hand and towel draped over her shoulders, she figured Hisako might be in her office which was the closest location to check first. Finding the door, she lightly knocked and entered when prompted. "Hey..." @my-ancestors-protect-me

New Direction | (Open)

Hisako let out a heavy sigh and slumped in her chair. Over the pat few years, she had taken on many more responsibilities at the Jean Grey School. Among them was teaching her first class by herself. Soon after all the major superheroes had vanished, the young woman had begun taking classes to get her teaching degree. Finally she had moved up from only being a teacher’s assistant to being a fully accredited teacher. It felt like four years had gone by in the blink of an eye.

The disappearance of the heroes also meant that her life had gone in a new direction. She had devoted all her energy to education. Hisako had hung up her costume years ago, focusing on keeping the doors of the school open so that young mutants like her could continue to learn to control their powers. No longer Armor, the Japanese girl had lost contact with all three of her surrogate fathers: Logan, Scott, and Hank.

Despite all of that however, her days were mostly made up of mundane things. Teaching, grading assignments, planning curriculum, that sort of thing. Every once and a while, she felt the itch to get back out there, but with the current climate and how much clout HOPE held these days, it wasn’t worth it. It was better to keep her head down and concentrate on helping as many kids as she could. The knock at her office door came as a welcome reprieve from the seemingly never-ending pile of papers in front of her.

“Yeah? Come in,” Hisako called out to the visitor.

[dahliahsiao-blog]

I will write about the following, leave one in my ask box

askboxmemes:

Dear person I hate,

Dear person I like,

Dear ex boyfriend

Dear ex bestfriend,

Dear bestfriend,

Dear Santa,

Dear mom,

Dear dad,

Dear future me,

Dear past me,

Dear person I’m jealous of,

Dear person I had a crush on

Dear girlfriend 

Dear boyfriend

Dear *anyone*, (specify)

[dahliahsiao-blog]

“Well, this is a rather unexpected surprise. He knows your name. Fascinating. What else does he know?” 

One of these days, Dahlia will figure out how to shut the woman out again. She fell quiet eventually, so there is a way to do it. But right now, there were so many questions to be asked. Answers that will either scare her or leave her in anger. But why? Who knows. After everything, for all she knew this was her own personal hell. Being around other people after so long of being in solitude. Not by choice, it just ended up like that. People get scared when things aren’t looking bright. 

The darkness comes in and gently picks up that candle of hope. Pretending to care for it, keep it safe. Then it will gleefully smile as it snuffs the flame out. Consuming the innocent, letting them drown in fear of the unknown. 

It was not pleasant. That was for sure. 

In silence, the woman stared at Henry as he spoke. Her mind trying to process what he was telling her along with making sense of said information. Human sub-species? Wait...what? This was all news to her. Digging deeper into her mind, nothing came up to match this information. “Oh no, you are not going there again. Don’t close yourself off while digging for stuff in that messy head of yours. Be polite to the man” Dahlia really wanted to scream at the other woman. It was hard for her just to even keep things straight with that constant nagging voice chirping around. Hang on...Did she even answer his question about her name? 

Licking her dry lips, the red head opened her mouth to speak. “Ha...Haow” It sounded more like a croak, voice hoarse from lack of use. She actually wanted to ask how did he know her name. The annoyance reflected in her furrowed brow. There had to be an easier way to communicate. Charades was not her forte and neither was morse code. 

@savagescholar

The Woman Who Leaped Through Time | Hank and Warrior Dahlia

[dahliahsiao-blog]

Restless || Dahlia & Open

Open to any characters at the school or visiting the school

There was something about not being able to move around that put her in a bad mood. For as long as she could remember, Dahlia Hsiao was not one to just sit around and do nothing. She was always active. Doing things with her hands or just working. Even when she was left alone back at base, she still moved around to get things done. Made sure her recording was still playing, checking for any signs of life. Rationing the food. Keep the facility going even when she knew nothing about it. Fighting for her life. 

And yet, here she was, stuck in a bed recovering. The woman wanted to be up and moving. To see everything now that she can see once again. Was this place truly real? Were these actual survivors? Or was this some sort of hell? Having met Henry, she was unsure in what to think now. Nothing looked right. 

“We seriously need to work on your people skills” That damn woman was back again. More chatty than usual and it really annoyed her. She had been quiet toward the end, when Dahlia decided it was time to go down in a fight instead of dying like a coward. Leaving her alone to prepare herself. But ever since she had woken up in the medical facility, constant nagging burned her ears. 

The red head tried to shift in bed in order to sit up. Gritting her teeth, the woman squeezed her eyes shut as her arms shakily supported her. Not strength left in them from the severe malnutrition. But being told that she was stable and on her way to recovery, meant that she can at least move around. “No, it doesn’t. It just means that you aren’t drying anytime soon. You barely have strength in you. Just keep resting, let the doctors do their thing. Eat when they give you food and all that. Just chill...Or not. You’re ignoring me aren’t you” 

About time the other realized that. Dahlia was done listening to her. There...She did it! Panting from the strain of sitting up, the woman grinned and opened her eyes to see the door but soon the door switched to the ceiling as she fell back with a grunt. Dammit. Fuck. How much longer will she be in bed? A click reached her ears and then a creak as the door was opening. Moving her head, Dahlia tried to see who was coming in? Was it Henry? Or someone else? Maybe a familiar face. Yes...this was all just a strange, medicated induced dream. 

[dahliahsiao-blog]

[dahliahsiao-blog]

For once...she had a dreamless sleep. It was nice. Almost all her dreams ended up with seeing friends, innocents and everything fall apart around her after laughing and having a jolly time. Her memories playing a sick prank on her. Showing that happiness was not to be kept. That it can be ripped apart at any moment, leaving her in complete darkness. Alone. The wind whistling outside as monster awaited for appearance. To take her soul and leave her empty body on the ground for the scavengers to feast upon. No mother earth to make it one with her. No...Mother earth died when those monsters appeared. 

With this dreamless sleep, Dahlia was able to enjoy a brief moment of peace. Even then, that peace was broken when it was time to wake up. A sharp intake of breath. Right eye slowly blinking away the remnants of sleep , a gentle blue. Her left eye was still covered with gauze after blood started to run from her eyes. 

Slowly coming into control her body, trying to stretch. But she couldn’t. Her own body felt weak with a little bit of strength. That...wasn’t right. Something was missing. What did she forg-...Oh, that’s right. She was somewhere. In a place that was giving her medical treatment from the last time she was awake, even if it was briefly. Talking to the hallucination, letting the madness keep her going. This time though...something was different. For the last time she opened her eyes, all she could see were the scents around the room. Now...Light blinded her eye. 

A hiss of annoyance as she squeezed it shut. Very odd. What is going on? 

“While I have provided you company and the occasional if not stupid words of wisdom, this is out of my zone. Sorry chica” 

Great...she was still here. But it was the second voice that came in. Male. Gentle, full of kindness.Nervous and yet confident. That...was new. Was this another hallucination? Slowly turning her head to the direction of the new voice, she slowly opened her eye again, blinking a few times to get adjusted to the lighting. 

“No...No one in your head other than me. This time its a real person. Well, as real as we can get if this is a mimic, but they can easily be spotted.Sometimes” The other laughed before falling silent. 

Once her eye was adjusted, she immediately regretted opening her eye to see what was real and not. Blue...blue, furry man next to her. Asking her a question, assuring her of safety. Comatose for a month and a half? Stable condition? Dahlia had known she wasn’t going to live long because of how weak she felt back at the base...During the fight especially. But...was it really that bad? Her name? The hallucination chuckled before speaking up. “Yes...you do have a name. Even if you forgot, I still remember. Your name is Dahlia Hsiao my dear, so go ahead and nod for nice man” 

Hearing her name, it was almost foreign. Long forgotten but now remembered. Slowly, her head moved to let him know that she does. Single blue eye still staring as her mind tried to process new information. Who was he? What was he? Why did he look like that? Is he real? Why can she see again? Was he one of the rare survivors that she had been calling out to? Experimented on like she was? 

What in the world did she wake up to?

@savagescholar

The Woman Who Leaped Through Time | Hank and Warrior Dahlia

It had been over a month since the woman from the rift had come to be in the care of Dr. Henry McCoy and the Jean Grey School. The physician had doted on her dutifully every day since he had returned to New York. Hank had wanted to be there to take care of her from the beginning, but he was quickly called away for the Second Battle of Detroit. But now he could look after her and hardly ever left her side, sometimes forgetting to eat. Sleep took care of itself though. Oftentimes the blue apeman would fall asleep sprawled out in a chair next to the woman’s hospital bed, the book he had been reading aloud to her laying on his chest. Beyond that, there was the day-to-day work of monitoring her health and making sure she was fed and cleaned. Occasionally she would cry out in distress or mumble in her sleep. He would comfort her, holding her hand and stroking her hair. The super scientist had no idea whether or not this Dahlia had known a Hank McCoy where and when she came from. It was possible, he supposed, but there was no way of telling until she awoke. He studied her face as she lay there, sleeping. She looked just like his version of Dahlia, but in many ways so different. The most obvious difference was her brilliant crimson hair. Her body and face were noticeably thinner, more gaunt. Clearly malnourishment had taken its toll on her and slowly but surely, she was recovering. This other Dahlia looked healthier now than she had when they had initially brought her in.  Suddenly, she started to stir. At first Hank thought it had to be just another nightmare, but soon he realized the red-haired woman was waking up. Containing himself, Beast crouched next to her and spoke softly. “Hello?” he said, a nervousness working its way into his voice. Clearing his throat and slipping into his usual mannerisms, he continued more confidently. “You are safe now. You are in a medical facility. You have been comatose for roughly a month and a half now, but you are in stable condition. Do you remember your name?” @dahliahsiao

[dahliahsiao-blog]

Chatting with the mind || oneshot

Everything was wrong. This wasn’t the afterlife...it was Hell. She should be dead, greeting her friends and loved ones on the other side. Not where she was now...Wherever it was with whoever it was that decided to be the good Samaritan. Strength slowly returning to the body that had withered away in the years of isolation, Was this the work of the mimics? The very creatures that sought to wipe out humanity. That caused her grief. Caused her isolation. The light of hope to almost be snuffed out. 

Were they trying to bring her back to health? Just to kill her off? No...That wasn’t their MO. They killed any who were weak...Who were too young to do anything. They went after the strong. But...the last thing she remembered was fighting. One last hurrah before kicking the bucket. 

“Yes, but there were others there” 

Great....Not her again. She started to appear after a year of being without contact...A figment of her imagination. A way to cope with the loneliness that surfaced. Dahlia Hsiao turned her head in the direction of the imaginary person. While she could not see as the woman refused to open her eyes whenever others were around to provide medical attention. It was fear. Fear of seeing the place around her void of color. Fear of the fact that there were actual people around her. Color all around her as their scents filled the room. No...She refused to believe that there were other people. Why didn’t they answer her broadcast? Why....Why didn’t they

“Didn’t it ever occur to you that they have but you refused to believe it? Have you really forsaken hope?” 

Yes...Yes she had. No contact. Rationing out food for so long. Becoming weak. Solitude. Depression....Nothingness. 

The other laughed. “Oh please. You had me...You spoke with me for fucks sake.”  That was true, but it was only because there was no one else. 

“Yeah and then you had to go out and fight to the death. Go back to that moment...Remember what you saw....heard” 

No, Dahlia did not want to remember that. Mostly because there were other people around her when she was fighting the mimic. Beautiful scents that melded into the muted color of the world. Such beauty. It was a lie...It wasn’t real. “If it wasn’t real...then how did you get your sword back? It was thrown at you” 

There was no denying that. No way in hell did she suddenly gain another ability. It was impossible really. With the nanites having only given her the ability to see scents alone, it was impossible to gain another. Because that’s what they were programmed to do. Open up one ability. The procedure was painful, but it gave her team a slight upper hand. So..there really were people. Humans...Living human beings that appeared in the last moment of her life. 

No. She still didn’t want to believe it. 

“Stubborn bitch. Can’t you see! This is it! You got a second chance! These people that were there, they are helping you. Bringing you back to the world of the living. Back to a possible world where mankind will be on the top of the food chain. A chance where you can live to die of old age. Open your eyes and see for yourself. See that this is not an illusion. That everything will be ok” 

Lies...All lies. 

“Fine then! Don’t believe me, you’re practically lying to yourself. You can hear them talking as they monitor your vitals. Feel them as they carefully move you to change the sheets and your clothing. Stop denying the truth.” 

Anger bubbled up inside of her, the heart monitor following the increase of heart-rate with its beeping. Fingers weakly clenched the sheet as Dahlia wanted to jump up and scream at the other. She wanted to run out. Leave the place of lies. Leave the lie that Hell weaved for her. It was a test. To see if she truly will stay put. Perhaps a fiery pit waited for her outside the door. Or maybe something else. 

“Open your eyes and see Dahlia. Just open them and see!”

“Nn.....Nnnn-o....No....NO!” Her voice started out quiet, hoarse. Unused for so long, but it was still there. The voice she used to belt out commands to the team. Voice that was also gentle. Eyes flew open to angrily glare at the imaginary person that she could never see. Colors...Colors everywhere. Each of them representing a scent. Sterile...Medical...those were familiar from a time long past. But others...others were forgotten, unfamiliar. Wisps of scents lingered, melding with another. People...people have been in the room. Those were their scents. But soon, the rainbow of scents faded as red filled her vision. 

Dahlia’s eyes stung as warm liquid ran down her cheeks. What was happening? Anger was replaced with fear as she started to gasp. This was wrong...All wrong. 

A gentle voice reached her ears...the illusion...the imaginary companion. “Shhh, everything will be ok. Just close your eyes and deep, calming breaths” Dahlia obeyed. Eventually falling into a dreamless sleep, the lullaby being sung guiding her into a calm state. 

[dahliahsiao-blog]

She never dreamed of the world outside, or missed the world out there.

— Go Dok-mi, Flower Boy Next Door

[dahliahsiao-blog]

Ever since their meeting at the gas station, Dahlia had been traveling with Remy. It was not as lonely and it made it easier to be much careful. The woman’s focus was on the walkers that were scattered about, slowly shambling their way to the origin of the gunshots. They made her nervous. Where they really walkers or one of the whisperers? It didn’t matter right now, as it was best to be prepared for anything. While he had lookout duty, she proceeded to continue gutting a walker that was taken down for getting too close. It was a habit. Take one down, gut it and smear the insides all over her. To mask herself. 

With a handful of guts, the red head approached when he motioned for her to come up.  “Sounds like it...Will have to be extra cautious inside the houses....Walkers might still be inside or one of the living” Her voice had returned to normal the more she spoke, but it was still in a hushed tone. No need to be loud and attract trouble. “Which is why we must mask ourselves” Dahlia held up the handful of rotten guts. His choice. 

“As for the looting, hopefully we can find some gas or another one of those  camping stoves so that we can purify water easier...Maybe a survival kit just for that” Wishful thinking as a lot of things that weren’t broken or empty or still being used by the living were usually found when looting. Weapons would be nice. As her own were dulling out and guns were too loud. But she will take what she could. Plus...A shower would be nice. A nice warm shower. If one was still working. Nothing worked anymore. “Don’t forget about getting warmer clothing in case we somehow end up in the colder regions. No sense in freezing to death while trying to outlive the dead”

Dahlia just nodded at his question. Better to get moving now than later. Waiting can lead to trouble...Just as the moron shooting a gun and attracting the dead was causing. 

(Not so) Safe Have || SHARP Walking Dead AU

There were perks, Jane supposed, to being military in a time like this. The combat skills, the crackshot, and the survival skills required of all marines had certainly saved her ass more than once. Now, the Commander made her way through abandoned streets, a course set for a town supposedly untouched by the shambling corpses attempting to kill them all. Granted, Jane Shepard had lost her optimism when she had watched her entire squad get overtaken by a horde of the fuckers. That being said, she well knew that it was probably too good to be true. But she had nothing better to do and no other prospects. Her hand lifted her lid to run over her short red curls before she replaced the hat on her head. Her pack remained on her shoulders as she trudged, unbothered by the weight of it. She had walked through the deserts of the Middle East with the same equipment, and she could walk through a suburban town with it, too.

As she walked, Jane passed the time by chanting military cadences in her head. Her worn but well-maintained boots picked over fallen debris and around crashed vehicles as she remained on alert. 

To her left, the sound of sickly moaning which had been her bedmate so many times now that she had lost count had her drawing a ZT 0160 combat knife and wrapping one of her spare undershirts around the hand that gripped it. She had learned that the bitches hardly moved faster than clumsy toddlers, so she wasn’t concerned as what looked like the remains of a housewife held out her arms to come at her. Sighing, Jane shook her head before ducking around the initial lunge to bury the blade into the thing’s skull. She must have been an old one, because the bone gave like a rotted pumpkin. 

Watching the zombie go down like a sack of potatoes, Shepard sighed. She was less than a mile from the town and still seeing walkers. The sliver of hope to which she clung began to flicker.

A gunshot to her left snapped her out of her dismal thoughts, however, and she turned to take off at a run. After all, how long had it been since she’d seen another person? Another live person, that is.

[dahliahsiao-blog]

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