1964-07-07 - The Beginning of Mutiny
Summary: A simple teleport turns into the beginnings of a Mutiny in Limbo.
Related: None
Theme Song: None
nightcrawler illyana 


Limbo is pretty much as one who is used to it would expect. The sky is a dark, boiling red. The ground is a rusty red. There are demons here and there. And Illyana Rasputin is in her sanctum. The demons have been riled up, lately, and she's had trouble controlling them — and she wants to know why. She is the Queen of Limbo, and it's worrisome when her subjects start behaving strangely. So while things LOOK completely normal… there is something wrong.

But elsewhere in Limbo…

*

There is something comforting now that Kurt knows that he's traveling through a dimension to get from one place to another. It's not that he disappears, but he sort of moves through space in a different way. He's on his way to the gym that he's been sneaking into for the last few months and, now that he knows the space well, he tends to teleport into it. This time, however, he teleports into the dimension…and yet can't seem to get through to the other side. The last time this happened, he met the kind Blonde woman who ruled the dimension. Maybe she is catching him again?

"Hallo? Fraulein Illyana?"

*

No Illyana present, no. But demons. There are certainly demons. And when Kurt calls out, they start coming out of the woodwork — not that there's any wood in Limbo. Small creatures with large heads, sharp teeth, long claws. These are the dregs of Illyana's subjects, and they are hissing at each other as they peer out of their hiding places.

"It calls for the mistress…"

"It calls for the queen…"

"She will not be the queen for long…"

"It is meat. It is for food…"

*

Golden eyes widen at the words that come hissing from the strange location. Can he teleport away? He certainly tries…a hand going to the small golden cross that he always wears about his neck. "I am not food. Go away!" is called back as he tries to step away from the creeping demons. This…is not good. He really should start traveling with a sword or something, not that one is easily found.

*

Kurt's words bring hissing laughter from the demons as they start to creep from their hidey-holes. "It thinks it is not food," a blue one says, its horns twisted so that one pierces its own ear, and its lips bloody from the jagged gateway of its teeth. And it grins, quite literally, from ear to ear. "Oh, how much fun! If you are not food, blue thing, what are you?" Its body is tiny, barely as big as the whole of its head, and it skitters toward Kurt, giant nostrils flaring as it inhales his scent.

*

Nightcrawler tries to take another step back, his tail wrapping around him so that it can't get caught by one of these other demons. "I am…" he looks at those around him as if trying to figure out an answer. "I am me. I may be one of you. I do not know, but I am not -your- food or anyone's food!" A three-fingered hand still touches the cross about his neck as if prepared to use it against these Hellish creatures.

*

The little blue demon, possibly the ugliest thing that Kurt has ever scene, starts to laugh raucously, practically doubling over in its mirth — and then leaps for Kurt's face with a snarl before it even gives a sign that it's about to attack (well, beyond the fact that it was talking about eating him).

A silver blade flies from seemingly nowhere, impales the demon, and nails it to a large rock.

"That just isn't polite, boys," says a male voice with an American accent. "You are demons, but you must rise above this baser nature." From the shadows steps a youth with shaggy blond hair. He's wearing a black domino mask tied behind his head, a brown uniform that looks like it might belong to a Boy Scout, right down to the ascot.

*

Nightcrawler crouches as the demon suddenly leaps at his face and he pulls the cross out, brandishing it as if it can somehow protect him here. But as his face isn't attacked, one eye opens and then the other one. He sees the blonde-haired young man and blinks, straightening some, "Danke. Can you tell the others that I mean them no harm and I do not wish to be harmed…?" Not that he thinks they'd listen. "I…seem to be caught here. Can you tell me where Fraulein Illyana is? She was able to let me go before when this happened."

*

"Oh, they know you mean -them- no harm," says the boy with a grin as he comes closer. "I'm afraid them harming you… that's not so optional. I mean, the rude part, that's not eating you." He turns his eyes toward one of the demons. "I've told you boys time and again: where /I/ come from, we say /grace/ before we eat!"

The little demons look suitably abashed.

One — a green demon — rasps out, "Good bread! Good meat!" One by one the other demons start to chant with him. "Good God! Let's eat! Good bread! Good meat! Good God! Let's eat!" Over and over.

The tiniest of the demons, no more than five inches tall, leaps onto Kurt's shoulder from behind and shouts in a squeaky little voice, "Rub-a-dub-dub! Thanks for the grub! Yay God!"

*

It takes a moment for Kurt to realize that this human-looking youth may not be on his side either. There's a frown before he pulls the cross from around his neck and holds it out as if it will protect him from these demons. First, the 'prayer' is spoken in German, "Im Namen des Gottes, des Sohnes und des Heiligen Geistes, Ich befehle dir, weg zu bleiben!" and then he repeats it in Latin, "In nomine Dei et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti, Idcirco praecipio tibi ut discedite!" Maybe it will do something, maybe not? But he has to try, even if he's in some Hellish dimension, he will not give up on his faith.

*

"Er kann dich nicht horen," says the blond boy. "Nicht wenn du hier bist."

The demons tighten their circle about Kurt, stomping forward rhythmically to the words of their prayer. "Good bread!" Stomp! "Good meat!" Stomp!" And the little demon on his shoulder crows and grabs hold of Kurt's ear, preparing to take a bite.

A blazing disk appears from nowhere, brilliant light pouring into the area and lighting it up as though the sun has finally risen over the starless Limbo. "Perhaps he's not," comes a voice, "but /I/ am!"

Magik erupts from the disk, clad from head to toe in her silver soul armor. The demon on Kurt's shoulder is skewered and flicked aside as it crumbles to dust. Her soulsword flashes around, killing a half dozen demons in one sweeping blow.

"You don't belong here," she pronounces, pointing the blade at the blond boy. "Through the disk, Herr Wagner."

*

Nightcrawler doesn't have time to denounce the very idea that God cannot hear him even here. The demons are approaching and starting to nibble on him and then Illyana appears and saves the day! Kurt doesn't need to be told twice to leap over to the glowing disk. "I am sorry, Fraulein! I did not mean to stop here, but I was caught!"

*

"I belong here," the blond says mildly. "The demons have spoken. They want me. Not you." And before Kurt vanishes into the portal, he will see Illyana summon another disk to send the boy away — and its complete failure to move him.

There are likely some further words on the other side of the portal, but Kurt is out of earshot by the time they're spoken. A few moments later Illyana follows him through the portal, and closes it behind her. "You did nothing wrong," she says as she arrives. "Somehow that creature has locked Limbo away — nothing I can't undo, but… be cautious if you must teleport for now." Her face is stony, her blue eyes blank. Illyana is very good at not giving away her emotions. Whether terror or rage.

*

Nightcrawler frowns as he tries to catch what's being said before Illyana comes back to wherever he was placed. "Who is he? Und…if I cannot teleport, that will make things difficult…" and dangerous. "Can I help you with something? Is he evil?"

*

"I have no idea who he is. He's human," says Illyana. "And I don't know how he got here." She steps away to an altar, speaks some words in another language that seems entirely comprised of consonants. "Grnclstn! Mblndppr! Pcfcnrtwst!"

A crack rolls, like thunder, across the dimension. Illyana turns back to Kurt.

"You can teleport. Be careful. Bring a weapon with you. Bring salt or iron or silver. These things hurt my subjects.

"But yes. That boy is very evil. And I will call on you for help, when I figure out what to do about him."

*

"Human und he came here?" Kurt watches Illyana as she does some sort of ritual and nods when she tells him that he can still teleport. "I will be careful und…" a weapon? "I will try. It is not so easy to go walking around New York with a weapon." The cross is tucked back into his shirt, "Iron? I can bring that, I think. Silver…maybe." He looks back as if in the direction that he came from, "You cannot force him to leave?"

*

"I will," says Illyana, "but he was warded against my magic and my mutation. I couldn't force him out, and now that he's not right in front of me, I could not sense him the way I could sense you." She rubs her face with one hand, releasing her sword so that it vanishes into thin air. "I've unlocked the dimension. You can escape now.

"S'ym!" she shouts, and the large purple demon is there. If he's turned on her, he doesn't show it. He's groveling when he arrives. "Go find the kid out there. Get some other demons to show you the way, if they will. Find him. Bring him to me."

*

"Was…" Kurt repeats. "Is he not now?" As for escaping, he doesn't go quite yet. Instead, he waits as Illyana orders the other demon to fetch the boy. "Let me help you? If I can. I do not want to leave you if there will be a fight that I could help with." He may not be familiar with this place, but he's obviously pegged Illyana as someone to support.

*

"Is," says Illyana. "For now, anyway. Until I can find a way to bring down his wards — or who warded him." She runs a hand back through her hair. "If S'ym can catch him, there will be no fight." The violet demon stalks off. Illyana watches him go. "I don't expect him to catch his quarry just now," she adds.

*

Nightcrawler is quiet for a moment before he tilts his head and asks, "What will you do with him when he is caught?" There's another pause before he offers, "The demons there…they were saying that you will not rule here for long. Is he trying to take this place from you?"

*

"Is that what they said," says Illyana, not a question based on her tone. "Then that must be what he is doing. He does not exactly seem the type… though I suppose with the demons' support…" Her nose wrinkles. "I may have to find more help."

*

"I will help…und if I can get more people for you, I will try. I do not know many," Kurt admits, "But I will help you if you need it." Because that's just sort of who he is. "Do you want to keep this place?" That seems to be the major question.

*

Illyana raises an eyebrow at the question. "If I did not keep this place, it would become even worse," she says succinctly.

*

Nightcrawler falls back into a crouch and looks to the other, "Ah. Then I will help you if you will let me." Even if this place doesn't seem to like him, she seems to need to keep it. "I can go get some iron und silver if that will help. I do not want to leave you to fight them alone." He quickly adds, "Not that I think you could not do it alone, but…no one should be alone."

*

"It's fine. When you leave, so will I," Illyana says. "I do not live here all the time, Herr Wagner." She rubs at her face again, looking stressed and tired. "The demons cannot leave without my permission — at least for now."

*

Nightcrawler ahs, "That is good then…" although does that make it easier for the demons to rebel? "Shall we leave then?" Maybe it will help with the stress level. "I am sorry that you have this Mutiny. I know you will be able to stop it." He even manages a smile at that. "I do not want to keep you here if you wish to leave…so…" he can continue on to where he was going if she'd like.

*

Illyana nods. "Yes. Let's go," she says with a sigh, grabbing something off her altar and tucking it away. She gestures toward Kurt. "After you, Herr Wagner. The demons might get more bold after I leave — even if you go just seconds later."

*

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