The X-Project

God knows there's not a chance in hell I'm going to be able to sleep tonight, so what the hell? Don't think Jean's had a chance to make any sort of report to the database yet.

Succinctly. Taygetos ambushed us while we were on our way out of Moldova. Thought I'd taken every reasonable precaution - unpredictable travel patterns, all that crap - but they managed to find us and set up a pretty perfect ambush. I got hit by a psi-bolt that also took out their teleporter, who dropped us both in the Ukraine. It left them with no other option than to take Jean-Paul and try and use him as leverage.

The psi-bolt screwed up my head pretty badly. I was wandering around thinking it was twenty years ago and Mistra had taken GW. So basically, temporarily insane, a few hundred miles away, and totally useless for the duration. Jean straightened my head back out, and it turned out I'd gotten some useful information about their whereabouts from the teleporter when we'd both been staggering around bleeding from the nose.

They let one of their telepaths loose on Jean-Paul. Tore his mind apart and put it back together intending to use him as a weapon against whoever came to rescue him. I'd go into more detail but I've done enough throwing up in the last few days.

Bringing him back wasn't easy. That's all I'm going to say about that. Fixing the damage is going to be worse. Charles and Jean have been working since we came back and they've hardly scratched the surface. I can't get into the details, I just can't, but it's really bad.

I'm going to be in the infirmary most of the time for the next little while. I seem to be able to help. Part of his mind's recognizing me, at least. If there's anything I can do to stop him from slipping away from us, I've got to do it.

Rather anticlimactic, all things considered. Kurt's with us and not too badly hurt - obviously, since we brought him back on the cargo plane - although he's going to be a while in recovering. He's down in the infirmary, with Amelia giving him a thorough going-over.

Sadly, we didn't bring back any explanations as to precisely what the hell was going on. Magneto was there - we spotted him at the end of a hallway, but picking a fight in the middle of a hospital, even a shady private clinic that was holding Kurt against his will, was not really an option.

I'm almost sure he meant for us to see him.

If anyone wants my opinion, this was some sort of a test, to see how we'd react. I can think of at least three incidents while I was at Mistra where we were lured into demonstrating how we'd respond to a particular situation; it can tell an enemy a lot, so long as they're not throwing away anything too valuable. Given that Kurt was obliging enough to traipse happily into their hands, the bait came at no cost to them, even. And after the ambush they pulled with the Blackbird, it's fair to say that they were probably wondering how that might change the nature of our response to something like this.

Note for the security-minded: how whoever it was knew to pass that package with the evidence for where Kurt was to Suzanne has some nasty implications, given that she's not been out in the field with us yet.

I'm going to call Amanda and tell her Kurt's back and able to have visitors.

I'll take Angelo's coms watch in the morning - he sure as hell isn't going to be fit for it. I just had to fish him out of Harry's, where he was doing his best to drink a whole bar's worth of alcohol. Needless to say, he wasn't particularly coherent by the time I got there.

I'm going to have to take myself off active duty - let's say, for the next two weeks. Having missed a week's worth of training is the least of it; I'm going to be back in Tel Aviv at least once in the next couple of weeks, which would just mean further disruption to the rotation. I'm behind with my class, Elpis is still going to be demanding a lot of my attention, and frankly, I feel worse than I did two weeks ago when I was already recognizing that I needed some recuperation time I hadn't given myself.

If I'm here and I'm needed... well, I'm here. But I'm hoping that's not going to be the case.

Toad and Mystique decided to show up. Clearly there was no actual trouble, or Lorna and I wouldn't have waited to get back and file a report. They seemed relatively non-hostile, although Toad and Forge had words. I suspect mine and Lorna's presence might have inclined them towards restraint.

I tried to follow them telepathically but lost them in the crowd pretty quickly. We thought it was more important to get the kids back here than pursue, in any case.

I have to admit I'm now wondering what Magneto himself may be thinking, regarding Forge's book. Toad did make a threat, but it was pretty generic - he didn't give away any useful information. Scanning is not on the top of my priority list when we have the Brotherhood and our kids in close proximity to one another, so I didn't pick up anything illuminating either.

Even though this wasn't precisely a team mission, I've filed a report for the database. To sum up:

- We got Domino back in one piece.
- Alison stumbled on some information that may or may not crack that network of training camps wide open for Bridge and the others. GW and MacInnis (don't ask. Do. Not. Ask.) are going to verify the information before anything's done with it.
- We all brought ourselves back in one piece. Although Cain probably still has sand in unfortunate places, and I'm still cursing my father's name (what else is new, I know) for shooting me with a tranquilizer gun.

So, all in all, a fairly productive trip. Although Gideon is still among the living, which, in hindsight, is kind of disappointing even if I didn't quite manage to seize the opportunity when it was presented to me. (I was debating. Then my father shot me.)

Some of you are aware of the fact that I've been doing a little work on the side... okay, rather a lot of work on the side these last couple of months, trying to create a database that will let us more easily track the activities of governmental agencies and NGOs with an interest in mutant affairs in the Third World. I've been able to do a lot from right here, given Charles' contacts and mine, but I knew there'd be a point at which I had to do some traveling, and I've just reached it.

Consequently, Angelo and I - presuming he's up for the trip, I haven't asked him yet - will be heading off to Kashmir, probably on Friday if I can get the flights arranged. I've been chasing a bit of a mystery for the last few weeks, and it's time I went and asked some questions in person. I so often tend to get better results that way. It must be my charm.

I'm not anticipating any difficulties in Kashmir. I've been there numerous times, both with the Pack and with Mistra. It is not the war zone that it used to be. Hell, the tourist industry's resurrected itself, even. I will however take my com. Just in case.

Because I fucked things up but good here, and you should all know. I had lunch with my father yesterday in New York. He decided that now would be a good time for me to be properly introduced to my uncle Gideon. I'm not the only person who somehow wound up with a new last name still related to the first. Faraday, fore-day - Morrow. Get it?

I didn't wind up at Mistra by accident. It was intentional. My family thought it was a good way to produce the type of person they wanted. My father thinks it was a success and I need to get over my resentment. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger and all that.

The Social Darwinism I remember from my childhood is real. I'm not sure what else is. Saul was sitting there telling me these things and still insisting that what I remember about how I left Alaska is wrong. Makes me think that there must be something wrong with my memory, because why lie at that point? I don't know what to think about that.

Gideon told Mistra where my wife and son were. Another test. If it had been the right time, they would have survived, he said. Saul said sacrifices had to be made.

I think I hate my family. Quite a bit.

We'll be having some company over the next couple of days. I'm heading out in a few hours to pick up Mick and Anika at the airport; Tim will be here with MacInnis sometime tomorrow. Mick and Ani are going to be heading back to Spain with them. After we've discussed it.

We're obviously going to be keeping an eye on MacInnis. He won't be wandering anywhere unescorted, not to worry...

We're back from the meeting with MacInnis. No surprises of the violent and/or explosive sort. Plenty of surprises of the informative sort. A few too many, I think.

Alison is going to submit her own report for the team files; I'll do one of my own, too. But not tonight. Tomorrow. I need a little time before I can manage to be properly analytical again.

There is so much more to this, and him, than I ever expected.