Shortly after the events of Sunder
____________________________________

They were on the road, and out of the city. The X-Man, the two students who'd just gotten their first taste of a war zone, and the man he knew little more than that fact he had helped him get out of that war zone and was now heading back with him to the Institute.

Derek's hands trembled a bit as he kept his eyes on the road. Now that it was over and the adrenaline had worn off, he was actually starting to get scared. And it hurt when he inhaled. He visibly winced with almost every breath. That bomb packed one hell of a punch. His jaw clenched as he thought of the kid it had blown in half. He couldn't have been older than Sid. Clean-cut, face open-mouthed and staring at nothing. There was no doubt in his mind that he was someone's son. Someone in the ranks of those shits who'd been brainwashed by a religious bigot who was willing to put his own kid into this self-proclaimed "Holy War".

Quit thinking...

He took a deep breath, then cringed again. Something was wrong. He knew that much. But it wasn't like they could go to a hospital like this. Even with the image inducer now hiding his bruises, his torn clothing and all the blood on him would raise questions he just wasn't in the mindset to bullshit an answer to. It wouldn't matter, anyway. If something was wrong, a standard hospital wouldn't be able to do anything for him, anyway.

He glanced at the man briefly before speaking. "Mansion's 'bout an hour and a half away... Westchester..." he muttered through labored breaths. "The school's got an internship program with X-Corp... or did..." he added the last bit with a grimacing huff. Okay.... joking not good... It was his defense mechanism, laughing about the things that bothered him. Never letting himself get so serious that it could wind up breaking him. It usually worked, but the days events and the glaring pain in his abdomen was rendering it useless.

"If you wanna lay low there for a few days, ah'm sure we can find you a room 'til this shit simmers down." He added as he glanced back at Miranda and Sid. The booster had passed out, her face still looking wet, and now it was the cloaker's turn. He was holding her tight with the lower half of his face buried in her hair, his own tears staring to come down. A hint of understanding concerning those two crossed Derek's face before he continued.

"There shouldn't be too much of a problem... all things considered." He went on. "We probably have a room you can use 'til you figure out what you wanna do..."

Somehow, they'd gotten themselves out of the warzone alive. It helped to be invisible when they exited the premises. But at least they were on their way out to whatever "mansion" Derek had talked about before. At this point, Chris was sprawled across the back seat of the van, his legs lying on top of the body armor he'd taken off, Smith and Wesson on his stomach, and his head leaning against the side. The events that transpired from stakeout to the kill to the assault on the complex compared to a car going from 0 to 60. It'd taken a lot out of him.

"Mansion's 'bout an hour and a half away... Westchester..."

Chris groaned as he tried to scoot up straight, but still leaving his legs as they were. 90 minutes to contemplate, to go over any missing details he had covered before. 90 minutes to plan out what he was going to do about his Hyundai that'd left behind on that light post. 90 minutes to re-rationalize the life he took.

"The school's got an internship program with X-Corp... or did..."

School? Chris' eye opened up big and wide at the sound of that word. He immediately looked to his gun on his stomach. "Guns and schools go well together," he thought to himself and started to empty it out.

"You didn't mention it was a school back there..." A hint of concern was in Chris's voice. "What is it, like, college prep? Private?"

Chris quickly dropped the clip out and made sure to empty the bullet in the chamber. He put that bullet back in the clip and tucked both underneath his body. He didn't even know how Derek was going to explain bringing a random guy with the attacker's gear on carrying a weapon to this place.

""If you wanna lay low there for a few days, ah'm sure we can find you a room 'til this shit simmers down."

A mansion that has a school crammed into it still had enough room to offer rooms to strangers. How big was this place? Chris then noticed Derek looking over to the two teenagers in the front. He guessed they were students or a part of that internship he mentioned before. Chris took a breath and reminded himself of what he needed to do.

"I don't think that'll be necessary..."

"There shouldn't be too much of a problem... all things considered. We probably have a room you can use 'til you figure out what you wanna do..."

"Thanks, but I gotta call a few people when we get there. Unfortunately, I have to head back at some point. My car's hopefully still parked against a light post with nothing stolen...and I have to explain why my other gun is a few feet away from the corpse of one of those fu---idiots..."

He also had to call his sister, Abby, but he didn't want to mention that. Within minutes, this should have landed square on FOX News, CNN, etc. and by now he thought she'd be calling the cellphone still in his parked car. "She's probably going out of her mind," he whispered to himself as the ride went on.

JP with Storm

Derek glanced back and nodded as he kept focusing on the road, and his breathing. It seemed like if he didn't inhale to deep, he was fine, if not just a bit sore. As he watched the man empty the clip from the gun, he spoke back to him. "Yeah... it's a lil' bit of both. You'll need to check those at the gate." It didn't really worry him. With his dad being a cop, he'd grown up around guns. The fact that he was disarming it said enough to him about the man's intentions. And considering where they were going, if he wanted to start shit, he'd find himself on the ass end of Brooklyn with his memories wiped.

"As for the other gun, that's pretty easy." he added. "Self-defense."

He pulled his phone out and looked for one of the staff. Munroe, Ororo was the first one to come up, so he clicked it. It rang only twice on his end before the weather lady picked up.

"Derek. Are you all right?" Came the response, right to the point. "Scott said something about a bomb?"

He inhaled sharply as he gritted his teeth again, replying between breaths. "Yeah... I'm fine... Kids are good too... they're a little scraped up, but they're okay..."

"Mm. If you sign up for my Stealth and Infiltration class next semester, we'll teach you to do a better job concealing your injuries." she responded. "But I suppose that doesn't come up for you quite so often. Good work getting the children out of there. Can you make it back to the Institute safely, or should we come get you?"

"Heheh.. unh!...Harsh, 'Ro...." he laughed at the small jab, and immediately regretted it. He was in some pain, but still clinging to the faint hope that it would wear off by the time they got there. "But nah... I should be good... Just... a bit winded... Mir and Sid are pretty shaken up..." He glanced at the two kids, then the man in the back. I got another guy with me... helped me get out in one piece... He's a mutant, too..."

There was a pause that chilled Derek's blood a bit. Uh oh... he thought. I may have goofed again...

"Are you certain that's wise?" Ororo's voice finally came back. "The situation at the Institute is rather tense, as you might imagine; outsiders are bound to be viewed with a certain amount of suspicion. Not to mention, well.. are you certain suspicion isn't justified?"

Derek glanced up at the rear view mirror again. Really, you could be suspicious about anyone if you looked hard enough, but then again, that would be paranoia. And from what he'd seen of this guy, well, he was shady, to be sure, but then again, so was Derek, and he knew people had reasons for keeping secrets. "Yeah, I know it's weird... He paused for a moment and spoke a little quieter. "That's why I called." As much as he was hoping he wasn't going to have to back on his word, he knew that the final call really wasn't his. "He's fine, he bailed me out..."

After another pause, she maded hers. "All right. I trust your judgment. We're on code orange lockdown, so I'll let gate security know to expect the three of you and one stranger." Derek breathed a sigh of relief and winced before she continued. "Will you -- will any of you require medical care?"

"Nah...." he replied, panting. "Sid and Mir are fine... Chris is fine too, I think... we should be there in about an hour or so...

"OK. Be safe and stay vigilant; if anyone seems to be following you let me know. We'll see you when you get here." And with that, Derek closed his phone and spoke to Chris via rear view. "Welp, looks like we're all clear."

Derek explained the school a bit, but Chris wasn't too worried. As long he could explain himself, he thought he was good. Derek also added two cents on the kill, "self-defense." A justified killing didn't make Chris fell any better. He'd told someone before that it was a good sign when the job didn't get too interesting, but this mess wasn't a part of a case for hell's sake. The term should be "self-preservation"; that summed up Chris' feeling about it.

Derek soon grabbed a cellphone and called someone. By hearing Derek's end, Chris figured it was an administrator at the school just to check in; an update on the teenagers up front. He heard Derek cough a bit; guess the bomb took a little more out of Mr. Invulnerability than he thought. At one point Derek glanced back to Chris, which Chris in turned gave him a sarcastic wave back to him. as Derek talked about him. He informed her Chris was a mutant. "And the count grows to...at least five," Chris thought; the less people that knew about him the better; he didn't want the stigma of "mutant" affecting his job.

Moments later, though, the volume of Derek's voice dropped; dropped enough that it peaked his mind's interest. Chris looked to the side, squinting his eyes as his mind isolated his voice and barely picked up on whoever was talking.

"He's fine, he bailed me out..."

"...All right. I trust your judgment. We're on code orange lockdown, so I'll let gate security know to expect the three of you and one stranger."

It sounded like they were following the Homeland Security color coded system for security....probably students were staying there until it passed over. But there it was, the inevitable hint of distrust from a random guy that Derek survive the onslaught of bullets and explosions...or the other way round which was reality.

"Welp, it looks like we're all clear..."

Chris couldn't help but let out a chuckle. He wasn't entirely sure the other person on the line was convinced, but she trusted Derek. Anyone else would probably be okay with that, but not Chris. In court, there wasn't room for confusions, Chris would set everything clear for whoever needed to hear.

"I don't know, you're friend took a while to respond when you vouched for me..."

Was it going to creep him out? Probably. Would he have to explain himself? Hell yes. And that was the point. Whether it be Derek or whoever that person was, Chris wanted to clear the air a.s.a.p. He was surprised this didn't come up sooner.

"So...what do you want to know?"

JP between Galford and Derek
__________________________________

Derek glanced into the rear view mirror again as Chris let him know that he'd heard everything. Or at least part of everything. He wasn't too surprised. He remembered what the mystery man had said back at X-Corp. He could focus on specific things.

As far as him listening in, Derek couldn't blame him. It was like what he did when he knew he couldn't be hurt. Using available resources. Being aware of the situation at hand.

He sighed. Some people are just determined to over-complicate things...

"Look..." he announced, his annoyance showing in his tone. "If you wanna bail, I'll drop you out right here." And with that he pulled the van to the side of the road. Sid jerked up as he did so. Derek glanced at him and gave him a look that was somewhere between a wink and a glare.

"But it's a long hike back if you take that route."

He put the car in park before leaning back to look Chris straight in the face.

"You're a cop, right?" He guessed. "Or something like it. My dad was a cop, too. It doesn't take... "enhanced focus" to guess something like that..." he waved a hand into the air.

Chris remained quiet as Derek responded. He wanted this to happen, letting Derek have the floor. He could hear some dissatisfaction in Derek's voice; it could be from the injuries, but more likely the eavesdropping. Someone listening in on a private conversation was still frowned upon these days. However, Chris couldn't keep quiet about the cop part as Derek pulled the van over, shifting Chris to the wall he was leaning on earlier.

"If I was a cop, we'd all still be there under the protection of the New York Police Department or S.W.A.T., not letting potential eye-witnesses drive off to Winchester..."

Derek took another breath before turning back around, putting the car in drive as he stepped on the brake.

"I said I could drop you off anywhere you wanted." he groaned as the pain in his chest grinded into him again. "'Roro's already expecting you and I'm guessin she's got a lot o' questions... but as far as I'm concerned, You got me out, and helped me find the kids... so I owe you..."

The pain wasn't getting any better. Sid was staring at him. He'd shaken Miranda awake. God, they must be panicked by now...

"So... all I need to know from you is that you aren't about to start any shit or bring any shit once we get there. That's all I'm askin'...."

Chris understood where Derek was coming from as he let out a long sigh. Leaning back against the seat, it was time for Chris to take the floor. Guess stopping the van had startled the kids upfront, the boy waking the girl up for this. "Great, they're going to love this," Chris thought.

"What I'm bringing along here is a long day and my own questions. It was long before I heard the first shots and it got even longer when I walked into the fun-house...To answer your question from earlier, you're close. I'm a private investigator, been one since college in D.C. I've worked with NYPD, but I have no ties to law enforcement, not undercover, either. I will answer any and all questions that you or...'Roro have; as long as you answer the ones I got. What I've heard from you, Havoc, whoever else arrived back there, and 'Roro is leaving me in the dark and as a P.I. I hate that feeling. I stepped into this mess today on my own, so I need to wrapped my head around it and dig into it..."

Chris took in a breath just to calm himself down; the day was wearing him down, he could hear the restlessness in his voice. He needed food or a pop to steady himself, hopefully he could get something at the mansion, the place they were still going.

"I'm going where you're going, that hasn't changed..."

Derek nodded, a look of understanding, and even respect crossing his face. He sighed before turning back around and leaning back in his seat to catch his breath. "Storm's gonna kill me... And Boss is gonna vaporize the body and flush it down the drain..."

But what he said still stood. He did owe the guy at least this much, so he let his foot off the brake and pulled the van back onto the road. If the bosses pinned him as a security threat, they'd handle it. Derek himself was most likely looking forward to a verbal firing squad. But at least now he knew what to tell Ororo when they got home. And as he'd figured, the guy already knew enough from the exchange at X-Corp to be able to do his own research, and if he really was a P.I., then he'd rather Chris's questions be answered by the X-Men themselves than hunting them out amongst the rumors.

They drove in silence for the rest of the trip. When they arrived, as Derek had told him, they checked Chris's gun at the gate and left it there.

As he pulled the van up to the front of the school, Derek looked like he was ready to drop. Storm was already waiting, fully outfitted in her X-Suit and looking as stern as always to the bruised invulnerable. Sid and Miriam got out without so much as a single word, and Derek took another pained sigh as he glanced back at Galford.

"Well... Thanks again..." he panted as he removed his image inducer, the welts from the bullets he'd taken during the assault already black, reddening, and even yellowish at parts. "Thanks for helping get me and the kids outta there..."

He took another breath and grunted as he pulled himself out of the driver's side.

There was too much going on all at once for Ororo to fully keep track of: the attack on X-Corps, Kevin's tantrum, Jay's disappearance, student anxieties, residents like Sid and Miriam and Derek who were accounted for but not yet safely on campus, and thus still potential targets.

Fortunately, she didn't have to keep track of all of it. Scott was already coordinating the X-Men's response to events, the best trackers and psychics the X-Men and X-Factor had to offer were already searching for Jay, and several of the older students seemed to have Kevin as close to in hand as was possible. At moments like these, she'd found, the most important thing was to perform her own role as well as she could and trust in her teammates to perform theirs. She lacked Scott's ability to see all the angles; his far-ranging strategic wizardry was practically a separate mutant power unto itself, and she would do nobody any good by trying to duplicate it. As long as she took care of what presented itself to her be taken care of, as it came up; as long as they all did that, they would be fine.

So when her phone rang shortly after she left the students' meeting, and Derek reported he was on the road with the children and a new mutant (though, unfortunately, not with Jay), she focused her attention on that for long enough to notify security before moving on to the next thing. And an hour later, when security notified her of the van's arrival, she got up from what she was doing and went to meet them. It often seemed to her that this was the basic lesson of existence, so simple that it was easily forgotten: do what was needful, as the need arose. Greeting guests and debriefing returning residents wasn't dramatic, it wasn't impressive, it wasn't exciting; it was merely necessary.

Derek pulled himself out of the van with a new set of bruises and body language that spoke of injury he was trying to conceal; the children seemed fine; the new arrival seemed innocuous enough. Not that she could tell very much at a glance. She began with the children: "Miriam, Sid, I'm glad to see you two all right. Please go straight to your dorm wing and check in with Diana, OK? She's expecting you; you just tell her what happened and she'll get you some lunch. I may drop by later with some more questions." To Derek she nodded and added "Good work getting them back here safely. We'll talk about the rest of today's events later. For now, though, why don't you introduce me to your guest... Chris, I believe you called him?"

(OOC: Apologies for being VERY late with this...)

Chris decided to take a nap for the rest of the trip. Usually his iPod would fill the time in his head with a playlist, but they were driving away from it. So, his mind generated the soothing sound of Metallica's "Fade to Black" (or at least that slow intro) to put him asleep. The last thought that went through his head before fading away was that for some reason, Derek wasn't so keen on the "private investigator" heading. The next thing he knew, the van had stopped at the front gate and they needed to check his gun. Chris passed that and the clip up to the front. The ride finally stopped at the front, at this point Chris couldn't see the outside. The two kids got out quick and Derek turned back to Chris.

"Well... Thanks again...Thanks for helping get me and the kids outta there..."

Whatever Derek was using to cover his injuries wore off as the bruises appeared. Chris winced at the sight, seeing the aftermath of the beating he'd taken today.

"Well, I owe ya for covering the bomb...You take care of yourself..."

As Derek dragged himself out, guess it was time for Chris to get up. That took energy, energy he didn't have because of the nap. He slowly opened the side door and popped out of the van to find Derek talking to a tall white-haired woman.

"---introduce me to your guest... Chris, I believe you called him?"

Chris kind of limped over to the conversation, chuckling at the sound of "introducing". But it was the some voice from the phone, 'Roro he remembered Derek calling her. From the looks of it, Derek needed some assistance and quick, so he decided to make it himself.

"Chris Galford, pleasure to meet you. Why don't we let Derek get some help with..." Chris made a motion with his hands. "...all of that. Um, I heard you have some concerns about me when talking to him. You can ask me whatever, but as I told Derek, I do have some of my own to ask. So, is there somewhere we can speak in private?"

Chris looked back to the van he just exited. It still had the armor he needed and if the door was the shut, privacy was assured. He looked back at the woman and shrugged, then looking in awe of the front of the building. Derek wasn't kidding about the mansion.

Derek groaned a bit as Chris moved to help him. He was hoping the pain would have subsided by now. His mind moved to the bomb blast. He was more concerned with containing the blast than what would happen to his own body. He'd never tried covering a bomb before, and he didn't think it would be so powerful. His stomach was churning. He didn't know if that was from the blast, or if he was just really hungry.

He watched Sid and Miri move inside without a word from either of them. His heart dropped into his gut. He began to wonder if he should have tried to find them first; if he could have done something to make it better.

But there was no time for regrets. Storm gave them instructions before turning to both of them, asking for an introduction.

"Right... Uhmm..." he winced again as he stepped from the car on Chris's shoulder. It was business now. And there were procedures to follow. "Chris Galford, this is Ororo Munroe, one of the headmistresses of the school. Ororo, this is..."

Ugh, god, this is gonna suck... he thought before he continued.

"Chris Galford... P.I." Once he said it, he did his best to give both of them both equally apologetic looks. To Chris, it was look for having to divulge more information than he might have been comfortable with. For a P.I., anonymity was crucial. For Ororo, it was a look for not knowing more about him when he called her. He shook his head at her, at that moment wishing that he had some kind of telepathic sense that could tell her that he really didn't know when he called her.

All he could do then was wait to be cussed out. The pains from his abdomen weren't letting him do much more. But before that, he had one last thing to say.

"Sorry... 'bout all o' this..." his Southern accent came out. "Whadid.... ya wanna know...?"

"Chris Galford... P.I. Sorry... 'bout all o' this... Whadid.... ya wanna know...?"

Ororo winced at the pain in Derek's voice, and frowned at the thought of bringing a strange private investigator into the Mansion in the middle of a crisis. Still, it didn't really change the situation: Xavier's was and always would be a haven for mutants who needed it, and Chris had provided assistance to one of their own.

"Why don't we let Derek get some help with...all of that. Um, I heard you have some concerns about me when talking to him. You can ask me whatever, but as I told Derek, I do have some of my own to ask. So, is there somewhere we can speak in private?"

"That seems like a fine idea," agreed Ororo. "Why don't the three of us get you settled in the infirmary, Derek, and then Mr. Galford and I can move to my office and satisfy one another's curiosity. One urgent question I do have for both of you, though: did either of you see Jay while you were there? Mr. Galford, we're having some difficulty locating one of our residents, who we think may have been caught in the fighting at X-Corps. He's quite striking, an attractive redheaded lad, who would probably have been sporting a pair of wings at the time?"

Derek latched onto Chris' shoulder that he'd forgotten about; the one that was rammed into the driver-side door from the tale-spin earlier. The moment Derek went on it, Chris groaned and grimaced, but eventually fought off the pain and held him straight up.

"Chris Galford, this is Ororo Munroe, one of the headmistresses of the school. Ororo, this is..."

Chris turned to Derek as he paused for a moment, looking like he was summoning up the courage to say what was next.

"Chris Galford... P.I."

Derek gave a look of saying sorry to both him and Ororo and Chris gave him a "no big deal" look. What was the big deal about him being a private investigator...unless they had something to hide. Chris quickly shook the look off, trying to avoid what-ifs here; he'd worry about that later. Ms. Monroe agreed to a meeting, but then brought up something more troubling.

"Why don't the three of us get you settled in the infirmary, Derek, and then Mr. Galford and I can move to my office and satisfy one another's curiosity. One urgent question I do have for both of you, though: did either of you see Jay while you were there? Mr. Galford, we're having some difficulty locating one of our residents, who we think may have been caught in the fighting at X-Corps. He's quite striking, an attractive redheaded lad, who would probably have been sporting a pair of wings at the time?"

Chris' eyes light up at the thought, worry coming over his face. "We missed one?" He thought, trying to replay everything he saw in the complex. Redhead with wings? Chris had seen a lot of things back there, but nothing resembling that.

"I only saw the two kids we brought back...and the other folks we were helping out in the fight, sorry. If you wa---"

Chris realized his shoulder was starting to give, pain was slowly cracking through his face with more grimacing. He needed to get moving to that infirmary before they both dropped to the ground.

"...Yeah, how's about we get moving, Derek? My car crash injury's acting up..." Chris looked to him and Ms. Monroe about where to start walking.

"It would seem, Mr. Galford," Ororo added as the man's injured shoulder became apparent, "that our errant knight here is not the only one in need of medical care. By all means, let us take care of your injuries first; I will be happy to answer what questions I can afterwards." Ororo led the two men to the infirmary, trying not to let her disappointment over the lack of news about Jay show on her face. It was hardly their fault, after all; they weren't even sure that Jay was at X-Corps to begin with.

In an unusual turn of events Derek turned out to be the more injured of the two; after some examination and some first aid for both of them, she and Chris left Derek there to recuperate while they relocated to her office.

"Can I offer you a cup of tea, Mr. Galford? It's not in the least bit medicinal, but I find it helpful at moments like these nonetheless." As she spoke she began brewing some, for herself if nothing else, then sat on the edge of her desk and gestured her new guest to a chair.

"You said you had some questions, and I'll be happy to provide you with whatever information I can. And anything you can tell me about the attack would be greatly appreciated; we're getting multiple reports but eyewitness testimony, especially from a trained observer, is invaluable. So, let's get started, shall we? What is it you'd like to know?"

"It's just bruised, nothing serious..."

Chris carried Derek and followed Ms. Monroe to the infirmary. He knew he just needed to move around to ease the bruised shoulder. They arrived and he helped Derek to a table in the infirmary. Before leaving him there, he made a salute to Derek.

"Take care of yourself, sir..." Chris left with Ms. Monroe to her office, taking a small tour of the school inside.

"Can I offer you a cup of tea, Mr. Galford? It's not in the least bit medicinal, but I find it helpful at moments like these nonetheless."

"...Sure, thanks..." Ms. Monroe offered a seat to Chris. Chris took a step forward, but then had to stop himself. When he was with a client in his office, Chris was the one offering the love-seat with his sitting back behind his desk. He shook it off and pulled the chair up to have seat.

"You said you had some questions, and I'll be happy to provide you with whatever information I can. And anything you can tell me about the attack would be greatly appreciated; we're getting multiple reports but eyewitness testimony, especially from a trained observer, is invaluable. So, let's get started, shall we? What is it you'd like to know?"

"What I need to know is more background for myself than anything else, but I'll start with why I was there...I only ventured into the madness cause one of the attackers' vans spun me into a light-pole, where I got this lovely bruise on my shoulder from. I did kill one of the attackers after he'd shot two girls full of lead in the street..."

Just remembering the kill just hit Chris like a ton of bricks landed on him. It'd be awhile before he'd come to grips with it, but he shook it off, trying to focus on the later events.

"In my infinite wisdom, I took the guy's gear and put it on; it's still in the van which I need later...I entered the complex and finding Derek near a girl on the ground, injured a bit. Later, I was helping out Derek and a guy named Havok and they seemed to know each other. Havok said 'X-Factor', Derek said 'X-Men'. It identified themselves somehow which my head is trying to wrap around, so, I guess I'd like know what an 'X-Factor' and what an 'X-Men' actually is...and if you know anything about who attacked the complex today..."

Ororo's eyes widened slightly when their visitor mentioned having a set of the attackers' gear. In part this was because analyzing that gear might provide some useful information in determining who was responsible for the outrage. In part it was because she couldn't help but wonder if this story was a fabrication intended to explain away a uniform that had a far more inimical explanation. Well, she thought cautiously, I suppose my next move is the same either way.

"Would you mind letting us examine that gear first? We have some unusual investigative talents available to us, we may be able to discern additional information about your attackers," she explained. "As for your questions: well, the simple ones first. X-Factor is a mutant police force based out of Red Hook -- Mutant Town, as it's colloquially known -- and affiliated with SHIELD. Havok is their leader. The X-Men..." she hesitated slightly, then shrugged; he already knew more than was safe, there was little point to locking the windows when the front door was open. "The X-Men are a significantly less official group of mutants who from time to time become involved in resolving crises that affect mutantkind. Although this is not well known, and we would prefer to keep it that way, the X-Men are based out of this school. In addition to being Ororo Munroe of the Xavier Institute, I am also Storm of the X-Men." She tilted her head slightly to one side in ironic greeting.

"As for your attackers, I'm afraid we're almost as in the dark as you are. They are a heavily armed self-styled Christian militia known as the Purifiers, whose goal appears to be the eradication of mutantkind, although their tactics are odd, and that may well ultimately prove a red herring. As for who leads them, who equips them, who trains them... that, I don't know. If you've fought them, you may well know more about them than I do: was there anything unusual about the way they fought, or spoke, or about their equipment?"

Chris watched her reaction as he mentioned the gear in the van; he couldn't tell if she was shocked about it or something else was going on. Derek had vouched for him, but he remembered Monroe's reaction on the phone as not being thrilled about it.

"Would you mind letting us examine that gear first? We have some unusual investigative talents available to us, we may be able to discern additional information about your attackers."

"...Really..."

Chris wasn't expecting that, not at all. Derek said this was a mansion, then a school...Now she was suggesting this place had enough analyzers to track the attackers down? "What is this place," Chris thought to himself. It got better as she went over what X-Factor and X-Men. X-Factor was affiliated with SHIELD, which immediately triggered a flashback in Chris; back to the NY Public Library where a certain man in a spider-suit threw a man through the top window. He'd met a man named Jamie Madrox, who'd flashed a SHIELD badge for identification. Apparently, he'd also met the boss, Havok, at the complex. Chris was going home with enough crap to look up for an entire month.

"Well, since I'm not in a rush to get back downtown, I guess I can let you do what you can with the gear..."

"The X-Men are a significantly less official group of mutants who from time to time become involved in resolving crises that affect mutantkind. Although this is not well known, and we would prefer to keep it that way, the X-Men are based out of this school. In addition to being Ororo Munroe of the Xavier Institute, I am also Storm of the X-Men."

Now it was Chris' turn for his eyes to widen a bit. It was a front of some kind, the only way Chris could rationalize it. If she and Derek were mutants and X-Men, then everyone else involved probably were, too. The way she described it, it was under secrecy, "not well known," which as a P.I. he could understand and respect. She also said they had no idea who was behind the attack, the same boat as Chris.

"Machine guns...explosives...they even had some tranquilizers that Havok said negated mutant powers. Whoever's fitting their bill is connected, that I'm sure of...Derek had jumped on a suicide bomber, he might know what the kid actually said before the bo---"

Chris stopped mid-sentence. He was going over everything in his head, replaying it quickly. His career couldn't afford to forget details...even a small whisper before the bang.

"Must...be made pure...Yeah, that's what he said..."

"Thank you," Ororo replied as Galford agreed to allow them to examine the Purifiers' gear, and she listened carefully as he continued to relate what he knew about the attackers. Not that she expected it to turn up anything particularly significant, but that was the nature of investigations like this: pursuing a thousand unlikely threads in the hope that one will eventually bear fruit.

She nodded as he relayed the suicide bomber's quote. "Yes, that fits. They apparently consider mutantkind an impurity of some kind, to be purged by death and destruction." These sorts of fanatics, who perverted their spiritual traditions into an excuse for death, angered her more than she knew how to express, and her eyes grew cold and her face an emotionless mask as her attention drew inward, focused on keeping her fury from manifesting in the wind and the rain.

"Well," she said finally, "thank you for your assistance in dealing with them, in any case. I have a suspicion we've only seen the beginning of their plan, whatever it may be; we will need to be prepared for their next strike. If you think of anything else, however trivial, please do get in touch with me." She handed her visitor a business card with her civilian contact information.

"If you don't mind my asking, Mr. Galford, what are your current plans? Derek mentioned that you were a mutant and a private investigator... are you working on a case now?"

"Yes, that fits. They apparently consider mutantkind an impurity of some kind, to be purged by death and destruction."

"...Religious fanatics twisting it to their own goals? Where have I heard that before..." Chris's sarcasm couldn't be contained; just one way to relieve the stress of the situation (or at least the aftermath). That's why faith was such a two-way street and a bumpy one at that.

"They see the world in black and white where in reality it's gray all over...Least I see it that way. I don't see humans or mutants when they come into my office, I see people and I help people, plain and simple..."

Monroe offered her thanks for helping out the situation and gave a business card of sorts to Chris. He took it and put it in his pocket.

"If you got a pencil and paper, I can give you my info..."

"If you don't mind my asking, Mr. Galford, what are your current plans? Derek mentioned that you were a mutant and a private investigator... are you working on a case now?"

Chris chuckled at the thought of working a case or at least the one he was supposed to be working today. If something had actually happened this morning, he wouldn't be sitting here right now, talking about secret teams and religious fanatics. Hindsight's 20/20, but Chris wasn't sure if he wished for that boy to show up today.

"I was working this morning...and nothing happened. All I got was a few hours of country music in my ears before the bullets started flying, but I digress...I gotta go talk to the cops about the guy I killed and explain why I have his gear on me and why he's wearing my blood-soaked jeans...Gotta call my sister who's probably watching the news and freaking out about it..."

He was rambling on and kind of caught himself, taking a breath before the next thought passed by.

"...But I got nothing on my plate at the moment. Why do you ask?"

Galford's cynicism about religion was not uncommon, especially in the wake of the Purifiers' activities, and Ororo was quietly grateful that he chose to direct it against those who twisted their spiritual tradition to suit their own ends, rather than -- as was sadly common, even within the Institute -- against faith-holders in general. She nodded in agreement with his comment about black-and-white thinking, and entered the man's contact information in her smartphone.

"You're welcome to call your family and so forth from here, if you wish, as well as get something to eat. It will take us a little while to look over the Purifiers' gear, and I would feel better if our infirmary took a look at your shoulder before you left. In any event: I was asking mostly out of curiosity," well, that and a forlorn hope that maybe whatever had brought this man to X-Corps at the same time as the Purifiers would prove in some way related to their attack. "But of course we are planning to investigate the people who planned and ordered this atrocity. If you find yourself discovering anything more about them in your own work, I would appreciate an opportunity to share information, if you are willing."

She took a sip of tea and paused before continuing. "Derek mentioned you were a mutant as well... do you mind sharing what you can do?"

Monroe offered Chris the chance to call his sister from the school, which Chris nodded in appreciation. It felt kind of weird that she was trusting him when they just met for the first time, but he needed to contact Abby. She offered another chance to go to the infirmary, but Chris was still acting like a guy. He rotated the injured shoulder, wincing slightly, but it was pretty smooth movement, with a slight grin on his face.

"Thank you for your concern, but I'm fine, really...If it was serious, I'd be at a hospital and wouldn't have walked into a hell-storm..."

"But of course we are planning to investigate the people who planned and ordered this atrocity. If you find yourself discovering anything more about them in your own work, I would appreciate an opportunity to share information, if you are willing."

Though he was interested in what methods this school had in 'investigating' the attackers, Chris didn't have any reservations in sharing his plan of action...and what he'd already gathered about the attackers.

"Got no problems from me...I already informed 911 about the license plate of the van that hit me...MX7-54SN. Generic van with a generic plate may not be much, probably a dead end, but it's where I'm going to start digging..."

"Derek mentioned you were a mutant as well... do you mind sharing what you can do?"

Chris chuckled. The number of people who knew about his powers had grown exponentially today, much to his disliking. If it ever got that he was identified as a mutant, his career would be over, period....But what was one more person, right? Chris wanted to get started on the "analysis" of the gear, so he got up, a slight grimace from the shoulder.

"Sure..."

Chris headed to the door and opened it, holding it for Monroe to follow. He turned back to her with a more serious look on his face. He was putting a whole lot of trust in this woman, as she probably was doing the same with him.

"Just so we're clear...I respect your need for privacy about your...'X-Men'...But, I expect the same, if not more, from you about my powers...I'll tell you on the way..."

Ororo frowned as Galford begged off on medical care again, his wincing expression belying his claim that everything was fine. Ultimately she shrugged and let it go, though; he was not one of her charges, and for all she knew he was suspicious of what they might do to him in their infirmary. He had no more reason to trust them than they had to trust him, after all.

He related the license plate he'd obtained from the van, and she nodded. "As you say, it's probably a dead end, but at least it's a lead. Follow a thousand probable dead ends, we're bound to find a path to the truth." She entered a note containing the number on her smartphone, a custom app Doug and Sarah had developed that uploaded the information to the X-Men's central server via a secure connection. She had little doubt that they could find out more than the police, if there was anything to be found.

The investigator expressed a natural reluctance to reveal his capabilities without some reassurance, and she nodded as she led him inside. "Of course, Mr. Galford. Let me assure you, the identities and personal details of the mutants we work with is a trust we take very seriously. We will preserve your secrets as zealously as we guard our own."

"As you say, it's probably a dead end, but at least it's a lead. Follow a thousand probable dead ends, we're bound to find a path to the truth."

"And that's how I make my living..."

Chris watched Monroe enter the license plate into her smart-phone. Guess she was going to
follow the same dead end road he was. She eventually got up to leave the office and reassured him that what was said was going to be kept a secret, which made Chris feel slightly better. You don't truly know someone else's intentions, but Monroe seemed to be on the up and up; so he hoped. He closed the door to the office and walked through the hallways of the building where there was little noise...except for a distant voice, a girl's voice, coming from another hallway. He held onto it in his head as he followed her to the van, beginning to keep his word.

"---onder when we're gonna be allowed out..." Chris chuckled, remembering the place was on some orange lockdown from earlier.

"...Mmy powers involve a higher concentration or focus on my hearing and sight...My hearing I have a much better handle on. I mean, if I leave here right now, I can hold onto your voice inside my head for hours and you wouldn't know it..." Chris looked back to the hallway where he heard the girl's voice.

"...Or that girl who's wondering when this lockout's gonna end back there. Also, I can tune out noises as well, like an on-and-off switch just to hear what I want. My sight, like a scope's zoom, allows me to be in the presence of a situation as if I was a few feet away or across the street from it. I can hear everything around it or still isolate what I want...I guess you could call me a professional eavesdropper..."

It was true. As long as he picked up a sound or voice with his hearing, Chris could make everything else go away and hear what he wanted. They exited the building, where the van was still parked out front. Chris looked back to Monroe and remembered a feeling he thought when Monroe made her revelations to him.

"...I have to ask...Is this place a front? If you're a mutant, Derek's a mutant, and your 'team' deals with human and mutant stuff..." Chris put two and two together rather quickly.

"...Are the students mutants, too?"

As they walked to the van, Ororo contemplated the man's summary of his powers. "A useful trait for an investigator, no doubt," she said neutrally, while privately wondering how much that power had uncovered about the Institute's operations during his brief time here. Although the man seemed reasonably above-board, the truth was there was no way for her to know his true motives; well, not without having Jean or Emma touch his mind, in any event.

It was the problem they always had, of course: to fulfill their function, to be a bridge between the human and mutant worlds, Xavier's had to be more open and its borders more porous than was consistent with maximum security. Especially in a crisis situation like this one. Derek had done the right thing under the circumstances.

She was distracted from her ruminations by his question.

"I'm not exactly sure what you mean by a 'front,' Mr. Galford. Xavier's is a school, and we take our educational mission very seriously. But, yes, many of our students and staff are mutants, as you've deduced. We prefer to keep that fact unadvertised, as there are many hostile forces in the world that would target us if they knew of our existence."

A grin cracked Chris' face as Monroe made her comment about his powers. His powers more than helped out on cases, but even if he didn't have them, Chris would be doing just fine as a P.I. Besides, anything he gained from using his powers had to be explained and justified in court if the occasion arose, so he had to learn the ins and outs not just for job security, but for his own sake. If it every got out that he was a mutant with this kind of ability, Chris was done for.

"I'm not exactly sure what you mean by a 'front,' Mr. Galford. Xavier's is a school, and we take our educational mission very seriously. But, yes, many of our students and staff are mutants, as you've deduced. We prefer to keep that fact unadvertised, as there are many hostile forces in the world that would target us if they knew of our existence."

Chris had begun to open the van door as she spoke, still hearing her concern over the the label of a front.

"Apologies...it was the only word my mind could settle on...Well, you got one less person to worry about that..."

He climbed into the back and found the body armor where he'd left it. He took a deep breath before mustering the strength to lift it up. Chris had a hard enough time wearing it and walking around in it was. Chris grunted a bit as he started to walk backwards with it. Once he was safely footed on the sidewalk, he placed the armor on the van floor for Monroe to see it. Chris just happened to be looking at the hoody...dried blood surrounding the hole in it. He lifted it up for her to see as he was struggling not to flashback to that particular moment.

"...That'd be the armor I took off him so I wouldn't get blown to smithereens back there...I couldn't tell you why I went in; my common sense went out the window during the spin-out I think...Where you want this?"

"No apologies are necessary," Ororo reassured the man as he pulled out the Purifier body armor. "I just don't want any misunderstandings."

The armor was surprisingly heavy, and Ororo knelt down to inspect it. It confirmed that the men who had invaded X-Corps definitely had access to military-grade gear and the training to use it, but of course they'd already known that. There didn't seem particularly unusual about it, no signs of special technology or materials used in its manufacture, although of course more careful analysis would be required to confirm that.

What really caught her attention was the bloodstain, and when Galford asked her where she wanted the armor she thought for a moment before answering. "You know, it occurs to me that this armor may provide us with more information about its wearer, and perhaps through him those who gave him his orders, than about its purchaser. In any case, though, there's no reason for us to lug it through the Institute; you can leave it here and we can get it to where it needs to be. And thank you again, Mr. Galford, for all your help... if there's ever anything I can do for you, you have my number. And you should feel free to stay with us as long as you wish, to recover from everything you've been through." She wanted to encourage him to visit the infirmary again, but he'd been pretty resistant, and it wasn't her place to insist.

"Unless there's something else I can help you with right now, though, I'm afraid I do have rather a lot on my plate in the wake of recent events, as I'm sure you can imagine."

Monroe went to a knee and thoroughly inspected the gear. Given she had a bit more information on these Purifiers than Chris did, this would only add to that. Chris noticed her interest in the bloodstained hoody and what was said followed convinced him this place had what was needed to trace it.

"You know, it occurs to me that this armor may provide us with more information about its wearer, and perhaps through him those who gave him his orders, than about its purchaser. In any case, though, there's no reason for us to lug it through the Institute; you can leave it here and we can get it to where it needs to be. And thank you again, Mr. Galford, for all your help..."

Name, family history, hometown leading to surroundings, friends, places of interests, all from a little dried blood. Hurray for forensics.

"No problem at all. Just, uh, whatever you find, you mind sending me a copy to my offices? Always better to have more than two eyes on a case..."

"If there's ever anything I can do for you, you have my number. And you should feel free to stay with us as long as you wish, to recover from everything you've been through."

Chris smiled at the last part. "Still trying to get me checked," he thought, but he was going to stand firm. Though, if he slept on it wrong tonight, he knew he'd regret it. There was one thing he'd been neglecting since he arrived. Chris needed to make a very important phone call to a certain sibling back in the nation's capital. Monroe needed to get going, attending to lockdown matters he assumed. Chris needed to get going, but wasn't leaving without the gear...at some point the investigators were going to find out one stiff was wearing his jeans.

"I will hang around until your testing is finished and then head out with this bad boy...While I wait, though, I do need to make a phone call to my sister...You wouldn't happen to have a cellphone you don't care about?"

With all the talk of hush-hush, Chris didn't want anything leading back to this place. A cellphone he could disable the locator within so it couldn't be traced...

"Of course, Mr. Galford," Ororo replied distractedly to the man's request for a copy of the results of their investigations. "It is, after all, your gear we are studying. It's only just." While they chatted, she checked lightly over the body armor and weapons that Galford had brought with him. None of it gave her great confidence that they would uncover anything, but of course they would have to try.

As Ororo sent out some texts to the Institute's security and lab teams, arranging for the Purifier gear to be picked up and delivered to the labs, Galford asked for a disposable phone to contact his sister. It was an odd request, but an easily satisfied one, and she nodded as she sent one last text. "That's easy enough; there will be one waiting for you at the security desk in five minutes."

The worst thing about crises like these, Ororo had long since noticed, was that it was impossible to know for certain what was important and what was a distraction. There were always dozens of leads, hundreds of decisions, any of which might prove critical but the vast majority of which were trivial. Which category this one would fall into, only time would tell, but for now she had devoted as much time to this particular lead as she had available.

"I wish I could say it has been a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Galford -- under other circumstances it surely would have been -- but you do have all of our thanks for your help. For now, though, I really do have other things I must attend to. If you need anything else, the security desk will be happy to help, or they can contact me if they have to." She offered him a handshake as she stood, her mind already on the next task, and headed back to her office and the next dozen phone calls.

[exit Ororo]

"I wish I could say it has been a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Galford -- under other circumstances it surely would have been -- but you do have all of our thanks for your help. For now, though, I really do have other things I must attend to. If you need anything else, the security desk will be happy to help, or they can contact me if they have to."

She offered a handshake and Chris quickly accepted it.

"Same here, I won't keep you from what you need to do. You have my info if you ever need my help, just gimme a call..."

Monroe left back into the building and Chris let out a sigh, looking for the security desk from the entrance. He made the walk over, took a few minutes, and was still in awe of how big this...this "school" was. Chris arrived and a guard slid over the cellphone he requested.

"Ms. Monroe said you needed to make a call?"

"Two actually, thanks..."

The first number he dialed was a cab service so he could be picked up and get to his apartment, freshen up before he went to the police with all of this. They said about 15-20 minutes, Chris told them "more like a half-hour". He had no idea how long the gear needed to be tested so he wanted to give that some time to maneuver. The second call was long overdue...to his sister's cell.

"...Commence freaking out in three...two---"

"...Hello?"

"Abs?"

"CHRIS?! Where have you BEEN!?!?! I've been call---" Chris pulled the phone away from his ear because of her decibel level. He had turned back to the guard, who probably could hear her from his post.

"Chris, you there?" Chris went back to the conversation.

"Yeah, yeah, as long you promise not to scream like that again..."

"I was watching the news and then they said something in New York got attacked and blown up."

"Something? It was a complex probably as big as a few of your dorms, Abs. It was an attack on mutants, that was a place that helped them out...or at least that's what I heard..."

"Are you alright? Where are you?"

Chris started to pace around the entrance and away from the guard. He knew the answer he chose to say to her would be walking a fine line between keeping her at ease and having her freak-out again...Then again, there was no answer that would put either at ease. Chris sighed loud enough for her to hear.

"Yes and no...I was there, Abs..." There was a few seconds of silence.

"What do you mean, there?"

"...Like when the bombs were going off and the bullets were flying and seeing two girls get shot to hell there, Abs..."

"...W-W-Why were you there?" Abby could put two and two together and it wasn't a grandest of leaps, Chris thought, to think if he was at a mutant-based complex that he...Chris quickly shot a response back.

"I was in the area on a case and I heard shots being fired...I decided to go in and help..."

"W-Were you hurt?"

"A van spun my car into a pull...I should left then, but I still went in..........I killed one of them..."

More silence.

"...Y-You killed someone?"

"...Yeah, Abs...the guy who killed the girls I mentioned..." Chris tailed off at the end, staring at the ground. It just came out; it's not something you tell your little sister about, but Chris told Abby everything...almost everything...

"...You okay, Chris?"

"...I will be..."

"You should come home, Chris. It's safer at home than there."

"Can't do that..."

"Can't or won't?" Abby didn't like him moving to New York in the first place and in the last few weeks or so she was pushing him to come home. It was the first issue they'd really between each other (besides their mother).

"I got questions and I got answers...but there's a lot more questions I need to answer myself with what happened. I can't leave after today!"

"You have no reason to get involved! Remember the last time you put your nose into someone else's business?"

"Yeah, I nearly got expelled from THE Catholic University of America..."

"So come hom---"

"Abigail!" She hated when Chris called her that, sounded like he was talking like their father, but it always got her attention for Chris...and told her this was important.

"I know we haven't seen each other in a year, I know you miss me, I know you, Aunt Lisa, and Uncle Shane want me home...but I can take care of myself. I'll be fine, sis..." He could hear Abby sniffling on the other end, which almost got Chris to tear up.

"When it's safe...I'll tell you when you can come visit, what you've been bugging me for..."

"And when's that going to be?"

"...I have no idea..."

"...You never called mom before...

"And both of you know why..."

"...Alright...." More sniffling.

"Are you okay?"

"...Just be safe, Chris, I don't want to lose you over...over this mess..." If only she knew.

"I'm a big boy, Abs. If I can handle a politician's mess I can handle this...I gotta go now, I'll call you later when today dies down..."

"...Alright.......Love ya, Chris...

"Love ya too, sis..."

Chris hung up on the phone and slowly walked back to the guard.

"I'll trade you this phone for the gun I checked in earlier..."

"Can do..."

The trade was made and Chris, taking the clip back out of the gun and making sure it was unloaded, stashed it in his back. Leaning against the security post, there Chris waited...waited for the gear come back...and waited for his cab to arrive. He could hardly wait for the day to be over...

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