(London, UK)
The case notes of MI:13 Field Commander Peter Wisdom. Wisdom says that if you ask his opinion, David Haller couldn’t have picked a worse time to visit. He’s meant to keep the peace but conditions were tough even before David arrived. Unemployment was up, welfare was down and the recession was holding steady. The gloom has always been a bugle call for w****rs, so they are all out from under their rocks. Anti-gay, anti-Muslim, anti-mutant and anti-whatever. Maybe that’s why he came when he did. Though he does wonder how straight David was thinking.
If the reports from the US are to be believed then David is at a crossroads in his life. More power, more control and working out what to do with it. It all adds up to a major problem. And that is even before you get to President Abdi and his untimely state visit. Most folks hadn’t even heard of the sandy little state of Aqiria which is nestle up Persia’s crotch. Abdi and his cronies have a record blacker than a smoker’s lung when it comes to things like women’s rights, mutant rights and such. So there were protesters lining the street as the president’s motorcade drove through the city. Before long, nobody knew or cared who was against what – just so long as they were standing on the curb shouting.
The top snobs never wanted to get matey with Abdi but some hands will always shake and some mouths will always smile. The official line went “if we don’t deal with rogues, they will just get more roguish.” At a press conference between President Abdi and the British Prime Minister, Abdi tells everyone he wants to set up an agency like MI:13 in Aqiria. They are in the UK to borrow expertise and operations training. After the conference, he is ushered away by the security. He tells the PM that they already have their first recruit, which is a technological warrior by the name Black Gold. The PM humors him and then asks him to discuss oil prices. Even though Wisdom’s MI:13 colleagues went in with teeth ground and, even though certain members of the team were excluded on “cultural” grounds, they still played ball nonetheless. They did their duty, signed a deal and shook hands for all the world to see.
At least the rest of his team did. He would have been excluded on X-gene grounds if he didn’t have other fish to fry. Wisdom muses that “keeping the peace” is a lot easier when you haven’t got an unpredictable weirdo bumbling around town. Especially one that has been lurking outside the Israeli Embassy. It goes without saying he checked the grapevine when David popped up. The CIA, FBI, the hairy half-pint in Westchester and the green-haired cow from SWORD all said that he wants to change the world. He’s always planning something bigger and better and he has even stooped so low as to work with others. That said, it doesn’t take a genius to see that he is lonely.
Wisdom follows David as he walks through the rainy London streets. He watches as David meets with two men outside a pub and then goes in. Wisdom muses that maybe he has a thing for team-ups now. He has files in his office on both his pals. One is a Londoner with fire for a face and the Belfast boy is supposed to be dead. All three are dodgy bastards and nobody sane’s idea of a decent booze-up.
Wisdom crosses the street and opens the door to the pub. As he walks in, he starts to tell a joke but stops when he sees how full the pub is. Wisdom looks around the room to see a number of British superheroes including Chamber, Psylocke and Pixie of the X-men. Plus Alchemy, Liam Connaughton and the intergalactic rock star, Lila Cheney. Wisdom surveys everyone but they seem to know every smart quip he is thinking to himself. A voice comes from behind him and he turns to see David sitting at the bar. Referring to Wisdom’s assumption of David’s Scottish accent David explains he caught it on Muir Island but he’s no Brit. In fact, he’s not much of anything. With a beer in hand, he lists off outside, immigrant, mutant and Johnny foreigner. He then asks Wisdom if a strange is worthy of a welcome.
Wisdom walks forward and sarcastically tells David “alls the deadly mental wants is a crumpet and cuddle.” Leaning against the bar, David says they should cut to the chase and guesses Wisdom doesn’t want him there. He has compared notes with the Yanks and he knows that David has reached a plateau in his mind but he doesn’t know how long it will last. He’s afraid David is there to perform some world-changing craziness and he’s invited his fellow mutants to help.
David then says Wisdom would be right about it all. David then pinches the bridge of his nose and says that not long ago he thought the only words he needs were “I rule me.” But now he is starting to think no one should rule alone. He tells Wisdom he is chasing his father’s dream the only way he knows how. David says that mutants must work together to pre-emotively annihilate the bigotry of the…but he is cut off though. Wisdom tells him he was doing alright up to the call-to-arms bit.
Wisdom points a finger at David and says if he were a betting man he would bet David is there to take a pop at President Abdi as he has a right bug up his bum about X-peeps. Some sort of double clever scheme to eliminate a future threat, as that is David’s shtick nowadays. Wisdom then unleashes his energy knives and tells David he won’t be doing it in his manor. Wisdom slashes at David but he puts up an energy force field before the knives hit him.
Suddenly, the others rush over and Chamber holds David back as Pixie stands in between them. Psylocke whispers to Wisdom that she has a psychic stiletto pressed against his crown jewels.
Chamber says that the fact is they came to tell Captain Hairspray that they aren’t interested in helping him. David seems a little surprised as Liam tells Wisdom they don’t trust David. Lila Cheney chips in and asks why they would. Looking forlorn, David tells them he can’t do it on his own. Walking away, Chamber tells him not to do it then. As the rest go back to what they were doing, Wisdom tells David it’s a shame he didn’t bring a mutant violinist. He then offers David a word of advice and subsequently tells him to *&%# off. With that, David teleports away.
Wisdom triumphantly dusts his hands as the troublemaker has been sent on his way and the crisis averted. Although he was tempted to celebrate, as a responsible agent of the crown he naturally avoid all intoxicating fluids to oversee the group’s dispersal. Although it took longer than anticipated. Wisdom leaves the pub after having a few pints as the rest of the group waves their goodbyes to each other. In the meantime, the members of the government and MI:13 met with President Abdi. Wisdom muses that the diplomacy lark is a whole new bag. He supposes the suits really wanted the oil. At 1500 hrs, he decided he would head back to HQ as the protests were raging on. One lot against this and one lot against that. Nobody seems to be for anything anymore.
As Wisdom walks past the protesters, he hears a disturbance and turns to see people being thrown up in the air and blue tentacles whipping around. A group of Warwolves are attacking the protesters. Wisdom hasn’t seen any since they had some bother at the zoo with them but they have no business being on his turf today as they did back then. He leaps into action and starts fighting the Warwolves.
As he does so, he detects another presence and spots the astral projection of Blindfold floating nearby. Recognizing her from her file, he guesses she is with David. He read that she helped him with the Nazi business back in San Francisco. He asks if the Warwolves are David’s doing as it’s too much of a coincidence. She tells him she doesn’t know and that she was only watching David. She then flies through the Warwolf that Wisdom is fighting and it collapses on the floor. She wonders why he would put innocent people at risk but she is interrupted by a scream before she can finish.
He turns to see Dolph, a large green skinned man, attacking more protestors and firing a gun in the air. Wisdom rushes towards him and says it has to be David’s doing. One manifestation of evil is bad luck but two on the same day has the unmistakable stench of Eau de Rat. As Wisdom fights Dolph, Blindfold tries to reason with him. She tells him that David is so lonely and powerful and he’s frightened of hurting himself. Wisdom yells that she is a crap salesman and she tells him that David just wants to help. Wisdom slices Dolph in half and Blindfold says she doesn’t agree with all the things David does, like the manipulation and the controlling. But he isn’t evil and he doesn’t take risks. An exhausted Wisdom asks what she is trying to say but once again their attention is caught by something else.
Hearing the words “Joy and Fear” yelled loudly, Wisdom asks Blindfold to tell him that Plotka isn’t behind him. She points behind him and says that it isn’t Plotka. Wisdom spins around and slashes behind him to see that it absolutely is Plotka. Blindfold yells to Wisdom to open his eyes as David doesn’t take risks. She asks if he would really unleash all of this. As he grapples with Plotka, Wisdom begins to listen to Blindfold and think. He stops fighting and asks Plotka when they last time they met was. Plotka thinks for a second and then yells “Joy and fear” again. Wisdom turns away and Plotka says there are some Skrulls on their way. Wisdom tells him there isn’t and uses his energy knives to slash around him.
The world starts to change and he realizes he is still in the pub. He finds himself in a dazed state and slumped across the bar. Blindfold is with him and she spots David stood on a table with the rest of the group around him. They are all in dazed states too and barely conscious. Blindfold says that David cannot just control people into cooperating with him. He turns around and seems a little surprised to see her. He says that she shouldn’t have gotten involved and there is more going on. He tells her he has a plan and asks for her to trust him. Looking dismayed, she tells him she can’t. Holding his head, Wisdom walks up to them and tells David nobody rabbit holes him.
David gives the order to attack and the rest of the entranced group rush towards Wisdom. Blindfold yells for him to stop as this isn’t him. He whispers to her that there is something that must be done for his dad’s dream. He tells him she thought he learned and begs for him to let them go. As the group attacks Wisdom, David says she doesn’t understand and he needs them. She yells that he can’t just take help and make people be on his side. He repeats that she doesn’t understand. She hangs her head and tells him his father would be ashamed. He doesn’t say anything for a few second and then looks away, repeating that she doesn’t understand.
Blindfold goes up to Wisdom and touches him on the head and tells him he needs to see as she does. Through Blindfold’s vision, he sees a lines of orange energy coming from each of the mutants and ending with David. Wisdom starts slashing at the lines and breaking the hold David has over them. David is angry but Wisdom keeping slashing until each person is free. They all fall down unconscious and Wisdom tells David he isn’t so cocky without his meat puppets.
Infuriated, David yells that wisdom doesn’t understand and starts to channel an energy attack. Blindfold begs Wisdom not to hurt him but he ignores her and slashes at David with his knives. Before David can recover, Wisdom hits him square in the face and blasts a hole through his head.
