Antarctica ---

Peter was never happy about random jumps. Garrett understood and sympathized to a point. The first time they had done so was in a firefight in New Zealand. They ended up two miles away from the Colony in the middle of frozen nowhere. It was only due to Architect's vigilance that their bodies weren't frozen speed bumps out there even now.

" You sure about this, Gary? I know you showed me schematics and whatnot, but this could be ugly." Garrett knew the risks, but he thought about the poor emissaries from the PAX school. " You remember how annoying that flight to Europe was? Add eight hours to it. Now that wouldn't be much of a welcome to our new friends, now would it? My status as a reserve X-Man should be more than enough to smooth over any problems we run into."

Peter nodded and looked as if he wanted to say something else, but decided to save it." Alright, but you are going first." Peter bowed his head and concentrated, his hand on the door in front of them. There was the usual sound of a cork popping as the gateway appeared behind the door. He opened the door before Garrett. " After you, Boss."

Garrett stepped through first as requested. Dressed in his old Seizure outfit, skintight black with a skullcap and the X-Men logo on the shoulder, he looked around. He was in a hallway full of doors. He turned to tell Peter the mistake as he closed the door. " What part of the Mansion is this? This looks surreal, like it is staged or something."

Garrett had a strange and sinking feeling. This did indeed look staged and artificial. Unfortunately for them, that meant they were in the Danger Room. The hallway seemed to go on forever in either direction. " Hold perfectly still, Peter. Don't move. Don't speak. This is the Danger Room. "

Mizu Hidaka edged down the hallway carefully, hand lightly tracing the wall besides her. She paid little attention to the details of the innumerable door frames lining the hall. She had other things to worry about.

Behind her a door flew open, accompanied by a guttural roar. Mizu twisted at the waist, even as the griffin pounced at her, and tried to sink its teeth into her shoulder. Or, where her shoulder had been a moment ago. The half-lion half eagle beast bit at air, as the nineteen-year-old compressed the area between her atoms, and rapidly shrunk to the size of doll. She dodged between the creature's legs, and reversed the process just as quickly. Within seconds she returned to normal size, and took a running leap for the door from which the griffin emerged. She hit it with her palm, and all at once it seemed to go through an identity crisis, deciding that it must be made of water rather than metal. It shot forward and wrapped around the beast, encasing it in a sealed ball. Another sweep of her hand, and Mizu tossed the creature back where it came from, and the door molded back into its frame.

She barely had time to breath before two more doors banged open, and two more monsters appeared. A volley of laser fire blasted down the hallway. Mizu once more shrunk, to make herself a smaller target, then ran forward. One of the monsters stomped viscously, trying to squish her like a bug. She dodged between them, smacked the source door, and again repeated the liquid metal cage. Before the first was encased, she took a running leap for the second door. She hit the metal frame and pulled it away, before realizing she'd hit the wrong door.

A long tentacle slithered out of the suddenly flaccid portal, wrapped itself around her tiny body, and squeezed. She kept her cool, and expanded her atoms in a quick burst. The sudden growth spurt broke the squid's grip, as well as knocking back the second beast backwards several feet, and the metal door quickly melted back into place. Mizu sprinted forward, slamming into the rogue doorway with both outstretched hands. For a fourth time the metal warped and lost its stability, reaching for the last griffin. As it pulled the beast in, it snapped at her. She yelped and shrunk rapidly, but not before its razor sharp beak snagged a bit of cloth out of her black and silver uniform.

"Level completed. Pausing for reset and difficulty increase," a soft voice announced. The asian mass-and-matter manipulator collapsed to a sitting position to catch her breath. However, only a few seconds passed before one of the doors further down the corridor suddenly opened on its own. Two humanoid figures stepped out.

Still imagining it to be part of the simulation, Mizu shot to her feet, growing as she went, until she towered over the two creatures by at least five feet. She kicked at one of the doors behind her. The metal once more liquified, and shot forward, intent on encasing what Mizu assumed were like all of the other creatures in this advanced training exercise; Danger Room robots with holoprojectors and the ability to cause serious pain if she didn't dodge in time. Speaking of which.....

A giant grizzly bear with dagger-length claws roared from behind the manipulated portal. Seeing its prey and two other humanoid figures, it lumbered in, one deadly-looking paw aimed to strike. Mizu swept her arm forward, intending to kill three birds with one stone, by encasing the bipedals with the metal, and using them to batter the bear back.

Garrett stared down the corridor. There was a young Asian woman in uniform seated and staring at them in a look of disbelief. Peter was looking around in an easy fashion, clearly not prepared for what could occur here, which was anything. " What's a Danger Room? Looks odd." That was the type of response Garrett both expected and dreaded. He had no idea what the setting was, so he decided on discretion in the seconds he had to spare. " Peter, quick jump, now!" Peter responded by the tone and urgency in his master's voice. The door across from them opened and Garrett's vault appeared. Peter jumped inside as Garrett kicked the door closed. " Wait in my office. Go!"

He heard the pop and was relieved for Peter while simultaneously realizing that he had gone a precious few seconds over his limit. He heard the growl of a large bear behind him. He closed his eyes and sensed no nervous system. A hologram. Still possibly dangerous though. He heard the swipe of its paw just fast enough to drop to his face, hearing it slice the air above his head. Now prone, he launched himself in a reverse kip up in the Scorpion style, his legs twisting and turning in a kicking maneuver as he righted himself in a low, swaying stance.

Bear down, he turned to see the young lady was now at least ten feet tall if not more, bearing down towards him with a liquid mass of metal. Garrett knew that liquid versions of metal, stone and the like were extremely dangerous. If the manipulator lacked the control that they may be training in the session, their target could easily be killed by crushing or suffocation. He had no interest in either.

Unlike the holographic bear, the trainee definitely had a shining neural system. He put his hands in a praying posture before him and bowed his head as the giant girl and her torrent of metal came headlong at him. With a quick flash, he stopped the girl in her tracks and inserted a stutter into her brain, shutting her down. The girl dropped unconscious and returned to her normal size as the metal quickly reverted to its solid form, though now a solid unrecognizable lump. Garrett breathed out in relief.

Unfortunately, the Danger room had other ideas. The bear got a full swipe at Garrett's back. He didn't flinch, the red side of his mind enjoying it. " Program pause! Authorization, Codename Seizure!"

Mizu had just enough time to realize that the person before was just that; a person, not a robot, before darkness closed around her mind and body.

" Program pause! Authorization, Codename Seizure!"

"Acknowledged. Scenario paused."[/i] The grizzly beast froze mid-rear, teeth bared in a silent snarl. For a moment, the silence seemed to echo louder than the previous noise, before being broken by a familiar voice.

"Save and end session."

"Acknowledged. Scenario saved and ended. Retrieval code, Mizu Hidaka."

The hallway of doors faded away, as did the roaring bear, and the darkened areas of the room lightened and illuminated a figure that had been watching from the shadows.

Neena tilted her head forward, giving the appearance of looking over her glasses, one eyebrow arched slightly and a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

"Hmm. When you said you'd be popping in once and a while, I assumed you would be using the front door."

As the holograms faded and the Danger Room righted itself, Garrett immediately went to the young girl's side and checked her vitals. He saw that she had responded well to the stutter and he stabilized her neural traffic to ensure she woke up soon with no side effects. He then heard an old familiar voice come from the side."Save and end session."

Secure in the trainee's condition, Garrett rose to find Neena stepping from the shadows. It had been a while, indeed, and he was glad to see her. Tugging at the material on his old X-Man uniform, he said,"Still fits. I hadn't worn it in a while and wondered before coming if it would. It's good to see you, m'friend." He chuckled and approached her, always enjoying using her favorite colloquialism for those she knew.

"Hmm. When you said you'd be popping in once and a while, I assumed you would be using the front door." Garrett embraced her briefly and stepped back. " Heh, yes, normally it would be the front door. I decided to save myself the long plane flight and save some money." He winked and snickered." No, I actually needed to visit some people here in New York and this was the only place I was intimately familiar with. Unfortunately, my assistant Peter, who makes the portals, wasn't. Hence the random entryway. I didn't expect it to be this random though. Sorry for not calling first."

"Still fits. I hadn't worn it in a while and wondered before coming if it would. It's good to see you, m'friend."

Neena chuckled, and returned the embrace.

"I'm sure you haven't changed that much. And it's good to see you, too, m'friend. Or hear you anyway."

"Heh, yes, normally it would be the front door. I decided to save myself the long plane flight and save some money. No, I actually needed to visit some people here in New York and this was the only place I was intimately familiar with. Unfortunately, my assistant Peter, who makes the portals, wasn't. Hence the random entryway. I didn't expect it to be this random though. Sorry for not calling first."

Neena waved the apology away. "Meh! No worries. Friends don't need to call first."

She blinked once, her near-white eyes taking on a slight red tint, and glanced around with one of her still functional visions.

"Hmm. Your companion may find it a bit difficult to return the way you came...."

Mizu stirred, and sat up groggily. She rubbed the back of her neck, and grumbled, "Nani$hiterun datta!?" (roughly, "What the hell happened!?")

Neena coughed to hide a laugh, having learned that phrase from when Mizu first arrived at the Mansion, several years ago.

"Welcome back, kiddo. Mizu, this is Seizure. Seizure, Mizu. Mizu is one of our newest trainees. Seizure is one of our reserves. And remote testers. He was checking to see how you handled surprises."

Neena shot a quick wink in Garrett's direction, while keeping a straight face.

Mizu hopped to her feet, and bowed politely. "A pleasure to meet you, Sir." She glanced at her instructor, worry writ on her expression.

Neena smiled at her comfortingly. "Let's call it a day, kiddo. We'll finish up tomorrow." She bowed toward the girl, then patted her shoulder as she hurriedly passed by, and out the door.

"So," she began, turning back to Garrett, "may I be nosy about your visit, while we find a more convenient door for your friend to open? Preferably one in a less dangerous spot? And are these friends expecting you soon, or do you have time to eat?"

Garrett was glad to see his old friend again. he recalled spending many evenings on the roof with her to collect his thoughts and just talk about things. When he was a full member of the X-Men, he took the unofficial role of helping Neena with alot of her duties. He knew she was capable but he always had a soft spot for her. It wasn't matronly. he could never decide what it was. He just loved her as a true friend and felt the desire to help out. He smiled and didn't cringe at the mention of her blindness. It had come on over time from the use of her mutation. He did his best to avoid checking her eyes, as DocProf was more than capable of treating her. It was just another bit of baggage from being a doctor himself and a friend.

In regards to her mention of Peter, he replied,"Hmm, yes. Well, I think perhaps we could sort out a more permanent gateway that might work well for both of us in terms of security and ease. It's no a big deal" The young student was coming around, cursing and querying in Japanese. He shook his head and chuckled.

"Welcome back, kiddo. Mizu, this is Seizure. Seizure, Mizu. Mizu is one of our newest trainees. Seizure is one of our reserves. And remote testers. He was checking to see how you handled surprises."Garrett naturally played along, approaching her with a step and then bowing in return to her as she did to him as a sign of respect." You did well. Don't judge yourself too harshly, I rarely play fair. A truer thing couldn't be spoken.

"So," Neena began, turning back to Garrett, "may I be nosy about your visit, while we find a more convenient door for your friend to open? Preferably one in a less dangerous spot? And are these friends expecting you soon, or do you have time to eat?"

"You may absolutely be nosy. I am actually here to visit and tour the Pax Academy. I am sure you have heard of them. They wish to bring students on afield trip of sorts to the Colony and I was going to save them the long flight by jumping over and possibly setting up a gate for them to use exclusively for ease of travel. It's an interesting idea which I am warming up to. They can surely wait, as they may not be aware that I am here yet. I was actually going to call Iris from here and speak to her. But we can surely eat. Constant gate making makes Peter hungry. He will be happy to be here and have some good eats. Ladies first." he waited for her to lead him onward. Though blind, she knew the Mansion better than anyone.

Neena held in a snicker at Garrett's comment about not playing fair. Anyone who worked long enough with her already knew the odds of her 'playing fair' were less than those trying to fill an inside straight in poker. Possible, but highly unlikely.

"You may absolutely be nosy. I am actually here to visit and tour the Pax Academy. I am sure you have heard of them."

Indeed she had, and had quite a few friends who taught there. She brightened immediately.

"They wish to bring students on afield trip of sorts to the Colony and I was going to save them the long flight by jumping over and possibly setting up a gate for them to use exclusively for ease of travel. It's an interesting idea which I am warming up to. They can surely wait, as they may not be aware that I am here yet. I was actually going to call Iris from here and speak to her. But we can surely eat. Constant gate making makes Peter hungry. He will be happy to be here and have some good eats. Ladies first."

"Ever the gentleman." She chuckled and nodded her thanks at the chivalrous gesture. Then as she moved toward the door, she asked, "Have you heard from Maya recently? We lost touch a while ago, unfortunately."

She made her way down the hall easily; home was always the easiest to find her way around without aid. Even while talking, which she continued to do as they walked.

"So, PAX is sending a field trip to the Colony, eh? That'll be a great experience for the young'uns, for sure. Minus the cold of course." She shuddered, never having gotten used to the chill of winter in the northern states.

At the top of the stairs she added, "But I thought you didn't allow humans there. Does Katrina know that?"

As she waited for an answer, she turned her body in a circle, considering where would be the least obtrusive place for a new 'gateway'.

They began making their way through the halls. He took care to only watch for random obstacles, not pushing about her sight. he knew from experience that people with disabilities rarely wanted to be reminded of them, since it was something they had grown accustomed to. It was also hard to call hers a disability, considering her many other ways of sensing. " That's actually a rather wonderful turn of events. Maya has been working in Europe with a program called the Jump Start Initiative to use Haywire in a controlled experiment to restart the Gulf Stream. She's quite a different person than we remember, her military training and experience has really changed her. For the better. On a personal note, we have reunited and rekindled our relationship. We are very happy together. I know how you like good news."

"So, PAX is sending a field trip to the Colony, eh? That'll be a great experience for the young'uns, for sure." He agreed, nodding as they reached the top of the platform. Again, he realized he was being obtuse as to someone's sight as he had done with Maya. Without recognizing and subsequently apologizing for his error, he simply responded vocally. Yes, I think it will be good for everyone. I am sure there will be much in the way of negotiation." He saw her scanning the area. He wondered what she was looking for, but remained silent, simply glad to see an old friend. Age had only made her more beautiful, the serenity on her face something to strive for.

"But I thought you didn't allow humans there. Does Katrina know that?"

" I believe it is general knowledge, hence my visit here to try to find a mediation for the issue. I think it is an excellent way to educate the next generation of humanity, but unfortunately, it really isn't entirely up to me. The Council will have to decide. I made the motion to them prior to leaving. They have been on my back a bit for deviating from my Colony duties to pursue something that they don't necessarily approve of. It will take some time, but I am fighting the good fight, as usual."

" That's actually a rather wonderful turn of events. Maya has been working in Europe with a program called the Jump Start Initiative to use Haywire in a controlled experiment to restart the Gulf Stream."

"Oh?" Neena paused momentarily in her scans. She'd heard of the program and its initial failure. She had not heard of Haywire being used in a second attempt. Though she'd lost touch with the air elemental, Neena found it a bit hard to believe Maya would volunteer for such an experiment. She'd been so hesitant to use her gift offensively in the beginning, and that was with being in full control of herself.

"She's quite a different person than we remember, her military training and experience has really changed her. For the better."

Neena shrugged and nodded. "That's good to hear."

"On a personal note, we have reunited and rekindled our relationship. We are very happy together. I know how you like good news."

"Indeed! That's even better to hear." She grinned widely and nodded enthusiastically. Again, her nosy-neighbor-nature reared its ugly head, but she'd always been convinced that the two made a lovely pair. They seemed to stabilize each other, balance each other out.

She finally stopped twirling, and settled on the sliding doors of the coat closet. She pointed, then looked in his direction. "Does the doorway have to have a knob? Will those slider work? Or is that too close of quarters? If not, I suppose we could settle for the front door. Though that seems a bit cliche'."

When he spoke about the Colony reaction to the impending delegation, she tilted her head to listen, allowing her sightless gaze to drift aimlessly.

" I believe it is general knowledge, hence my visit here to try to find a mediation for the issue. I think it is an excellent way to educate the next generation of humanity, but unfortunately, it really isn't entirely up to me. The Council will have to decide. I made the motion to them prior to leaving. They have been on my back a bit for deviating from my Colony duties to pursue something that they don't necessarily approve of. It will take some time, but I am fighting the good fight, as usual."

"Its a shame," she remarked, "though I suppose I can sympathize a bit. Humanity's track record for tolerance leaves much to be desired. Still, at least its moving forward. Hopefully your council will be able to move forward with it."

She didn't intend to sound critical. Mutants and humans as groups had little reason to trust or tolerate each other, and so places like the Colony were by no means surprising. Even the Mansion, despite their good intentions of mutant-human equality, ended up catering to only one group. It was simply a shame that the Colony's pursuit of peace had taken such an extreme path of Isolation, rather than Integration.

In response to his 'fight the good fight' comment, she winked.

"Never doubted it, m'friend. Never."

"Does the doorway have to have a knob? Will those slider work? Or is that too close of quarters? If not, I suppose we could settle for the front door. Though that seems a bit cliche'."

It wasn't a terrible idea. There had been problems in the past with obvious gateways though. Problems he didn't wish to duplicate." I 've found it best that an actual door works best and one out of the way as well. Not to be rude or anything, but perhaps the Library would be best served, as it sees little use. " He chuckled a bit. It was sadly true though. Most of the kids here had always put powers first, education second. It was his choice to move out of the Mansion that had given him the time to focus on scholarly pursuits and why he probably actually attended and subsequently graduated from medical school.

" In fact, I believe there is an old storage room down there with archives and audio-visual equipment in it that would do nicely. if that suits you as"---Rrrrring. He looked down and picked his phone up. It said Office. He already wanted to faint from the roaming charges. He picked it up." We were just talking about you, Peter." He nodded a few times and then made an inquisitive Oh? sound. " Well, I'll have a look at that when you get here. We are going to have dinner with Miss Jenkins. I can check my mail after. There shouldn't be anymore dangerous doors, so come on over and we'll square this gateway away first. Yes. Yes. No, whatever you're wearing is fine. Yes. Yes. Peter, the roaming charges from Antarctica are choking me! Come on already!" He clicked the phone shut. "Very good. He should be somewhere around here straight away."

Neena nodded at the suggestion of the Library instead. "That'll work."

" In fact, I believe there is an old storage room down there with archives and audio-visual equipment in it that would do nicely. if that suits you as-"

Neena's ears twitched slightly at the ringing phone, and she automatically turned to listen. She didn't intend on eavesdropping, but most cellphones were loud enough that she couldn't help it. She looked up in his direction politely as he hung up.

"Very good. He should be somewhere around here straight away."

"Excellent. We can meet him in the Library then. And none of that 'Miss' nonsense, remember? I may be an Old Maid, but I haven't hit fifty yet," she added cheerily. "If he starts that up, he's in for a hit. I'd hit you, if I thought it would do any good."

She tuned and looked at him, one eyebrow raised, straight on enough for one to think that she could see his reaction. Her next remark added to the illusion.

"Hmm. I still say you'd look better as a redhead, but I guess the brunette works, too. You oughta let it grow out a bit more, like your friend's was."

She paused inside the library and glanced around. She squinted slightly as her infrared vision came online, so she could scan for any warm bodies.

"Excellent. We can meet him in the Library then. And none of that 'Miss' nonsense, remember? I may be an Old Maid, but I haven't hit fifty yet," she added cheerily. "If he starts that up, he's in for a hit. I'd hit you, if I thought it would do any good."

" I was going for Miss as a compliment actually. You'll always be a beautiful African goddess of the savannah to me." Garrett replied, firing right back at his old friend just as they used to. She was quite charming once one could get past that playfully gruff exterior. Even before she had lost her sight, those shades always protected her from being seen in a vulnerable way. He saw through it as easily as she could see through walls and clothes.

He laughed at the comment about his hair. " Come on now, Neena. You liked me better bald. It was sexy." he winked at her out of habit. Some things never changed. They headed down into the library and Neena was apparently scanning the area for Peter. " there's actually a distinct popping sound, akin to a champagne cork, just before he enters, as the portal seals itself in a new space, displacing the air of the previous space. Just for future reference."

As if on cue, the pop occurred, though it happened a little off the mark. As they looked down to the lower floor of the library, they could see Peter walking through from below, probably through the door way of the stairs down to that floor. He looked up and waved at them." Hey Doc. So, do I get to stay this time?" the slick sarcastic grin was plastered on his face yet again. Garrett found that he had missed his younger friend's attitude and outlook.

" I was going for Miss as a compliment actually. You'll always be a beautiful African goddess of the savannah to me. Come on now, Neena. You liked me better bald. It was sexy."

She tilted her head and gave him an unabashed grin. ”True. Not too many can pull it off, either.”

" there's actually a distinct popping sound, akin to a champagne cork, just before he enters, as the portal seals itself in a new space, displacing the air of the previous space. Just for future reference."

She nodded at the explanation. ”Thank ya. Ah! And right on time,” as the expected pop hissed. The reddish yellow of a warm-blooded person entered her line of vision.

" Hey Doc. So, do I get to stay this time?"

Neena leaned over the rail, looking down. ”Much better aim this time, kiddo. You sure would come in handy on the grocery runs. Instant traffic pass.” She laughed lightly, then turned to Garrett, and nodded. ”All right, let’s get you two set up.”

Rather than take the normal route downwards, aka ‘stairs’, Neena hoisted one leg over the balcony railing. The other leg followed quickly, and a quick push shortened her trip to the ground floor. She landed quite nimbly in a crouch, only a soft grunt giving her away.

Garrett was happy to see Peter again and glad to watch Neena use her usual friendly charms to make him feel at home. He watched as she ambled over the rail and dropped, landing solidly. She was still in excellent shape regardless of age. He felt the need to join her in athleticism, not to one up her, but it merely seemed natural due to his own training.He waited for her to clear the landing area as she walked with Peter and then vaulted one handed over the railing, landing easily.

He walked by the two of them arriving at the door in question first." This will be the site for the permanent doorway, Peter." He then took a step back and sat on the edge of one of the study desks. He always enjoyed watching this process. Peter smiled and walked by, mentioning how it was more than overdue. He stepped up to the door in question and pressed his index and middle finger of each hand together at the top and then slowly and purposefully traced the edges of the doorway until he was kneeling and his fingers touched the floor. He rose again and placed his hand on the door, the popping sound coming in sync with his touch.

" Voila!" He opened the door, revealing the cool metallic walls of the vault in Antarctica, then closing it and reopening it to show the regular room behind. Garrett applauded his work. "It should indeed help. Ready to eat?" Peter's eyes opened wide. " Most definitely! Anything besides the hearty foods of the Colony. Gimme some grease!"