Chapter 38: Crystal the Mad & The New Sinister Six
[Crystal Lanng POV]:
[Blue Side of the Moon, Moon Base of Apocalypse]:
Crystal trudged along the ruins of the Moon Base of the Grandfather of mutants, the remains of various mutants and Inhumans who were loyal to Apocalypse littered the ground. As she walked, Crystal even spotted the various core members of the Dark Riders, including members like Gauntlet, Tusk, Barrage, Synapse and Hardrive, among the others.
'The city itself isn't beyond repair. In fact, I was even able to successfully seal up the hole in the dome caused by the Master's rampage,' Crystal thought, looking up at the metal plate she generated from her techno-matter manipulation abilities. 'This place will serve the Master quite quaintly... Eventually. First things first, however, reparations, renovations and, of course, asset recoveries. Those two babies will be used by the Master for his schemes, so putting them into hyperstasis takes priority. However, to do that, the entire place needs to be properly… appropriated.'
Crystal set up a computer in the center of Apocalypse's former base of operations, eventually managing to open a space rift from there to one of her private warehouses.
Meanwhile, on the other side, were a small army of 3,000 of Crystal's latest project — massive robots 2 meters tall, armored in green, heavy, specialized anti-magnetic, polycarbonated reinforced material.
[Reference Image 1]:
[Reference Image 2]:
'Energy Defense Mark-5's, Construction Variants,' Crystal thought in pride. 'Based on the Master's E.D. Mark-1 units, however, unlike E.D. Mark-1's, Mark-5's are made to build up and construct, not defend. One of my recent favorite projects I've been working on.'
"Repair and renovate this place into the schematics I've just uploaded to your data drives," Crystal's voice rang out across the sea of drones, her eyes flashing briefly white with technopathic blue lines etched in them as she updated the instructions. "I've just sent all future instructions. This place should be fully up and running within the next hour — And completely finished within the next 3. You have your duties. Begin."
Wordless, the army of robots immediately began their work as Crystal watched the progress steadily being made, even minutes later.
Dressed in her new techno suit, complete with a pair of sleek, electric shock-channelling techno batons that doubled as a techno staff and filtration techno mask — Crystal Lang looked quite the formidable scientist. Or, maybe, just mad. She has garnered a nickname from her fellow scientists back on earth — One that pretty much summarizes her cold, analytical, if strangely outside-the-box-thinking methods of her profession: 'Crystal The Mad'.
[Reference Image]:
Crystal's gaze eventually shifted from the working drones to the corpses of the Dark Riders, specifically their core members.
'I could use some of them as research material. I know for a fact that at least 2 of them, when merged into one, would result in a moderately decent vessel for OMNIS or, at the very least, a vessel for the 3 A.I systems I've already summoned forth —- No, it wouldn't be powerful enough for them..'[Ch. 5.]
'Dirtnap and Gauntlet can be merged and altered to have a more human appearance but with both their abilities. Perhaps the resulting being could be sent to Brother Chris to be part of his little task force. Tusk and Exodus can and will be resurrected, conditioned and converted to serve as guardians of the base, while Hardrive and Barrage will be merged into one, becoming a satellite vessel for OMNIS… After much cleansing, of course.
'And Synapse will be assimilated by the being the Master plans to create from the bodies of Summers brothers.'
Conclusions predicted and made, Crystal began walking toward the labs, as her E.D. Mark-5's carried the corpses to the respective tubes.
When they were finished, Crystal released a malicious grin. "Test One," she began, tapping away at her tablet as she began her research, "Codename: Nihilist Squad."
[Lucas Blake/Redline POV]:
[Between Hell's Kitchen & Chelsea, Late Afternoon]:
CLINK! CLINK! CLANK!
The sounds of multiple blades clashing at the same time sounded on a rooftop in Chelsea, as 3 combatants faced off against a singular man in a mask and suit of crimson-black, with multiple blades and glowing crimson lens to the black of his red lower face mask. He wore a red hood over his head, only revealing a tuft of dark brown hair, crimson at the tip.
This was Lucas Blake, Lewis' very first clone and successor to Lewis' former alias known as "The Redline". It was a new and improved suit — one that maximized movement and lethality, while removing nuances and hindrances of its former model.
[Lucas Blake Reference Image]:
[The Redline, New Suit Reference Image]:
Lucas had long decided to leave his bow and arrow with his last suit, preferring blades, his psionic dagger, darts and various gadgets and tools that he created specifically for his work as the Redline. He was quite the marksman, but it was never his passion, not really. So, when he ditched his brother's original suit for this one, he included 3 backsheathes for his swords, while keeping the specially designed sheath made for the psionic dagger gifted to Lucas by Lewis.
CLINK!
SWOOSH!
WEAVE!
Leaning slightly to the left, Redline dodged Psylocke's katana while simultaneously using his lefthanded katana to block both of Elektra's twin sai's that were going for his head.
"Gah, Fall!" Elektra put more force into her lunge — to no avail. When she realized this, she tried to pull back her sai's, except she couldn't, as Redline angled his katana in a way that kept her unable to get back her sai's.
"You don't think I was going to go down with that?" he asked, using less than 7% of his strength to yank both sai's and his katana back, throwing all three blades to the side, and attempting to kick the Woman Without Fear out of the fight.
Unfortunately, Psylocke and Lady Deathstrike didn't want that.
Using her psionic energy on both her katana and her free hand, Psylocke came at Redline with a fervor only matched by Lady Deathstrike, whose adamantium claws were out and coming in beside her associate.
Through flips, kicks and impossible acrobatics, all 3 fighters faced off 2 on 1, that was until Elektra used her telekinesis to guide shurikens and daggers at Redline.
Sadly for her, they didn't even puncture his skin.
'The fight has spread all the way into Chelsea,' Redline thought to himself, as Elektra used his pre-occupation with the other two as time to telekinetically pull back her sai's. 'It started in Hell's Kitchen alongside White Wolf and the other Defenders. I sense the others are still in combat, though, with the former Winter Soldier on the side, the Defenders should've already finished their fights.
'Unfortunately, the Hand had called in reinforcements I'm almost certain weren't part of their allies in the show, such Taskmaster, Bullseye and Tom Shishido's Gorgon. They were arriving as I was fighting these 3, likely part of a scheme to separate me from the others.'
Blocking Psylocke's psionic palm blade and her psionic-projected katana with only his own psionic daggers, Lucas grabbed Psylocke's arm and slammed the psionic pink blade through Deathstrike's gut, then kicked both girls into the far wall with a single kick. They crashed through it and two others before getting stuck in the 4th.
'It's a shame Luke wants me to not go all out against the Hand — To let him get control of the organization with as little damage to assets as possible,' Lucas thought, using his telekinesis to choke Elektra, wanting the assassin in tights to pass out so he could return to the others. 'Otherwise, I wouldn't have had to mentally restricted myself to be able to use only 30% of my total true power as Redline without consequence… Not that I'd even need half my full power to take out the Hand, of course. Still, I—.'
Suddenly, as Lucas watched Elektra begin to lose consciousness, the large billboard sign across the street changed to Breaking News.
[Breaking News: Times Square Under Attack!]
[End of The Spider!?!!]
Unfortunately, Lucas wasn't able to read it all before a power outage turned off all the power across the city, and screens began lighting electric blue static. A pillar of lightning rose into the sky and, with his sharp senses, Lucas could tell what was going on, even as crowds of people ran away like ants when someone steps on their hill.
Spider-Man was getting jumped by Electro, Mister Negative, the Vulture, Digger, Scorpion and Molten Man.
And he was losing.
Turning to look at the assassins, knowing them to be defeated for the most part, Lucas turned to where he knew his Red Jet was docked, then hopping in it, the Redline flew towards the confrontation, intending to make sure the Spiderman survives this hurtle.
[Red Jet Reference Image]: