The X-men run missions and work together with the NYPD, striving to maintain a peaceful balance between humans and mutants. When it comes to a fight, they won't back down from protecting those who need their help.
Haven presents itself as a humanitarian organization for activists, leaders, and high society, yet mutants are the secret leaders working to protect and serve their kind. Behind the scenes they bring their goals into reality.
From the time when mutants became known to the world, SUPER was founded as a black-ops division of the CIA in an attempt to classify, observe, and learn more about this new and rising threat.
The Syndicate works to help bring mutantkind to the forefront of the world. They work from the shadows, a beacon of hope for mutants, but a bane to mankind. With their guiding hand, humanity will finally find extinction.
Since the existence of mutants was first revealed in the nineties, the world has become a changed place. Whether they're genetic misfits or the next stage in humanity's evolution, there's no denying their growing numbers, especially in hubs like New York City. The NYPD has a division devoted to mutant related crimes. Super-powered vigilantes help to maintain the peace. Those who style themselves as Homo Superior work to tear society apart for rebuilding in their own image.
MRO is an intermediate to advanced writing level original character, original plot X-Men RPG. We've been open and active since October of 2005. You can play as a mutant, human, or Adapted— one of the rare humans who nullify mutant powers by their very existence. Goodies, baddies, and neutrals are all welcome.
Short Term Plots:Are They Coming for You?
There have been whispers on the streets lately of a boogeyman... mutant and humans, young and old, all have been targets of trafficking.
The Fountain of Youth
A chemical serum has been released that's shaving a few years off of the population. In some cases, found to be temporary, and in others...?
MRO MOVES WITH CURRENT TIME: What month and year it is now in real life, it's the same for MRO, too.
Fuegogrande: "Fuegogrande" player of The Ranger, Ion, Rhia, and Null
Neopolitan: "Aly" player of Rebecca Grey, Stephanie Graves, Marisol Cervantes, Vanessa Bookman, Chrysanthemum Van Hart, Sabine Sang, Eupraxia
Ongoing Plots
Magic and Mystics
After the events of the 2020 Harvest Moon and the following Winter Solstice, magic has started manifesting in the MROvere! With the efforts of the Welldrinker Cult, people are being converted into Mystics, a species of people genetically disposed to be great conduits for magical energy.
The Pharoah Dynasty
An ancient sorceress is on a quest to bring her long-lost warrior-king to the modern era in a bid for global domination. Can the heroes of the modern world stop her before all is lost?
Are They Coming for You?
There have been whispers on the streets lately of a boogeyman... mutant and humans, young and old, all have been targets of trafficking.
Adapteds
What if the human race began to adapt to the mutant threat? What if the human race changed ever so subtly... without the x-gene.
Atlanteans
The lost city of Atlantis has been found! Refugees from this undersea mutant dystopia have started to filter in to New York as citizens and businessfolk. You may make one as a player character of run into one on the street.
Got a plot in mind?
MRO plots are player-created the Mods facilitate and organize the big ones, but we get the ideas from you. Do you have a plot in mind, and want to know whether it needs Mod approval? Check out our plot guidelines.
"You do not have to be an idealist in order to have belief in something," Mariusz countered, looking up at the stained glass windows of the Cathedral. Of course, with his background and degree Mariusz knew he could easily go on for quite some time on the topic of religion in general and Christianity in particular. Somehow, though, he sensed that would not be the best way to approach the topic with Tses. Besides, that kind of ham-handed preachiness was never a very affective tool of persuasion in the opinion of the Czech.
"And I'm still not to sure about the whole flying thing. You're more than welcome to get a closer look. I'm not scared of heights or anything, I just like having control over what happens to me. Who says you wouldn't drop me?"
"I would never dream of dropping you," Mariusz replied quickly, the feathers on his wings bristling a bit. "Besides, would it not be in the very poorest of manners to allow you to fall to your very doom while in my care and trust," he asked, arching an eyebrow in the direction of Tses as they stood on the sidewalk before the Cathedral.
"Shame to hear that," Mariusz said in reply to Melissa's mentioning that the NHL's season was on lockout. The Czech man had been looking forward to being able to watch the highest form of professional hockey in the world on a regular basis. In truth, it had been part of the appeal to leaving the Czech Republic to come to America when his father had been posted here in the first place. Now it seemed that he might not get to take advantage of that benefit. "I was rather hoping to be able to take in the best hockey in the world."
"My name is Melissa, can I get you anything else? We got a pretty good sports package here."
"I am Mariusz Kasparek," he said, introducing himself and offering the bartender a hand, should she wish to shake it. Handshakes were not usually the mode of introduction in the less formal environment of the bar, still proper manners demanded the hand be offered. "I would not imagine you happen to get the broadcasts of the Kontinental Hockey League here in the States, Lev Praha is playing tonight," he asked, not picking up the remote. He assumed that Melissa would better know how to work the televisions in the bar than he did. "I also imagine any chance of getting a Radegast Premium or Original is also unlikely, but I imagine you might have Pilsner Urquell."
Mariusz's wings flapped slowly to hold him in place as he perused the upper reaches of the bookshelves in the Mansion's library. Blizzard conditions were making themselves known outside with driving snow and a stiff chill wind. He really had no desire to be outside flying about in this sort of weather unless it was absolutely necessary. By the time he got to wherever he was going he would be a complete mess with rumpled feathers sticking out every which way. Most unpleasant. Because of the abominable conditions outside, Mariusz found himself in the library this morning. He was really starting to wonder if there was anything that this place did not have. The room was floor to ceiling books with plenty of tables and chairs spread about for ease and comfort while reading for either study or leisure.
Slowly the feathered man floated along the bookshelves, clad in a comfortable pair of sweats and a hoodie with a deep hood that would easily hide his face. As he moved through the books he kept his eyes open for anything that might prove interesting, eventually coming across the name of one of his countrymen though the author in question was long dead. Franz Kafka.
Selecting an English translation copy of The Metamorphosis from the shelf Mariusz allowed himself to float gently to the ground. Furling his wings he crossed the library as quietly as he could and settled himself into a large comfortable looking arm chair and opened the book.
"What is wrong with the church," Mariusz asked, leading the way in the direction of St. Patrick's. The church was, by itself, a big structure though it was nothing to most of the highrises that were around it. As they got closer to the building it became apparent that it was directly across the street from the Rockefeller Center and that the Cathedral's main entrance faced the Atlas Statue.
"The church has long been a beacon of hope for those in search of a better place in the after life," he continued, stopping for the massive wooden doors and looking up at the impressive facade of the building. "I admit that I am not actually a Catholic, but surely you can see that this is an impressive and beautiful old building." Mariusz paused for a moment and examined, at range, a plaque near the doors. "It is one of the oldest churches in the United States and, unlike so many of the steel and concrete monstrosities surrounding it, this church is made from Tuckaroe marble."
"Even if you do not wish to see the inside we could at least look around the outside. I daresay we could look much more closely than others," Mariusz continued, the feathers on his wings bristling. "That is, of course, if you trust me enough to take you aloft." In truth the Czech man was not quite used to walking this much, after all why walk when you could fly, though he would continue to remain Earth-bound if Tses was still unwilling to go aloft.
Mariusz flew over New York City, zipping over the streets at a height of about fifty feet. Snow was gently falling from the skies in large and lazy white flakes drifting slowly down to blanket the ground in a fresh carpet of winter white. If there was one advantage of being a flier in a city that was full to bursting with more than eight million people it was that the ability to fly made it quite easy to avoid the hustle and bustle of the city streets if one was so inclined. Given that the current activity that Mariusz was engaged in was a workout which served the double purpose of helping him to familiarize himself with the city that was now, essentially, his home avoiding the crowds seemed best.
At the intersection of Lennox and 110th the winged Czech emerged from the city landscape to, rather abruptly, be soaring over a mix of green and white as he flew not far over the treetops of Central Park. He soared down the middle of the park, his eyes following the paths of the various trails and walkways that crisscrossed it. Reaching the southern border of the park at 55th he turned and set about making a lap. As he was headed north, by wing, up Central Park West he was forced to abruptly tuck his wings and dive as an odd sort of bubble appeared in front of him which seemed to hold a teenaged boy inside.
"I suppose I am not the only one that decided today might be nice for a flight, even if it is snowing," he said, beating his wings and rising in the air until he was level with the bubble and using his superior vision to peer inside. "I am Mariusz Kasparek, and you would be?"
"“OK, so who won the lottery and bought this place? Wow.”[/i]
"In truth I am not entirely sure who owns the Mansion and the grounds," Mariusz said, adding a slight shrug of his shoulders as he answered the question. "Learning the history of this place is on my list of things to get accomplished, if for no other reason than simple curiosity and a love of history." The three of them continued up the driveway, coming closer and closer to the main entrance and Regan moved so she was a little bit out in front of Mariusz and Jacob.
“So you are a mechanic you said right? That must be fun! I would have one heck of a time trying to get all of that grease and oil out of my fur! Maybe I can watch you take something apart sometime? If you decide to stay here that is. I always love to learn about new things.”
Mariusz nodded his head in agreement, in truth the winged mutant had no real desire to learn about the inner workings of things mechanical nor did he have much of a desire to learn about things that grew. If Jacob and Regan were interested in such things that was fine, but they were not entirely Mariusz's cup of tea. Still, something Jacob had said had caught the attention of the Czech mutant.
"You mentioned having served in the Army, ano," he asked, turning his head slightly so he could better look at the taller man. "I believe they provide instruction in hand-to-hand combat, a somewhat unique form if I remember correctly. If you choose to stay here I would very much like to learn such skills, provided you were willing to provide the instruction, of course."
"I guess it's ok. Not great, but not as bad as some of these other ones."
"Well, I think I shall give this one a try. If I fail to like it, I do not have to buy it a second time," he said, selecting a box of the cologne from the shelf. Mariusz had watched out of the corner of his eye as Tses checked out the various perfumes and colognes on her own. She was clearly a bit out of her element, though based on what she had told him of her personal history he supposed that could hardly be considered as something that was all that surprising.
"And is there something wrong with being feminine," he asked, heading them in the direction of where they could take care of paying for their purchases. "I always thought all women liked to dress up and be a bit girly, even if only on occasion." He handed the cologne to a clerk who rang it up and then presented a debit card as a means of paying for it. The purchase was bagged and handed over to Mariusz who led Tses to the door before opening it and holding it once more to allow her to exit.
Once they were back on the street the feathered mutant looked this way and that, spotting something that was of interest to him despite the fact that he was Protestant and it was a place of Catholic worship. "I would make a bet you have probably never been inside Saint Patrick's Cathedral," he said, gesturing in the direction of the large neo-Gothic church and leading the way down the street in that direction.
“I apologize… I didn’t mean to startle you that much… just give you a demonstration.”[/i]
"It is alright," Mariusz said after Regan had responded, eyes still slightly narrowed at the newcomer. Since there no longer seemed to be any possibility of an immediate threat the feathered man took his arrow from the bowstring and replaced it in the hip quiver before slinging the bow over his shoulder again. There was no need to go about armed since, at the moment, there was no longer anything to indicate there was any danger.
“Well… I hope I didn’t just loose a big secret… but yes, there is a highly advanced aircraft here… as well as something I can’t identify. A large room of some sort. But before I go spilling the beans on everything, perhaps we should speak to someone who has knowledge of these things?
“I’m not sure what you are talking about Jacob, but I’m sure someone in the mansion would know, but I can’t guarantee that you will get answers. Given that it is not common knowledge, it must be something that is meant to be kept secret.”
"I also do not know anything about any secret aircraft," Mariusz said, repeating what he had said a moment earlier as the gates to the Mansion's property opened. He followed along with the group through the gates as the Impala started up and followed them all through the gate seemingly of its own volition. No doubt another display of Jacob's powers. "In truth, other than for very long flights, I do not much need an airplane."
“Well the mansion is a safe haven for all mutants Jacob, but I don’t suggest that you come in just to go sniffing around for things that are not meant to be seen. If you can contain your curiosity until the right person can speak with you, then I see no problems with you coming inside.”
"Yes, as Regan has explained, the Mansion is a mutant haven. It is also a school where those like us may be educated and also learn to use their powers in a safe manner that will not endanger themselves or others," Mariusz said, adding on to what Regan had said. "It should be a relatively simple matter to, at least, show you the public areas of the Mansion and track down someone in the admittance office that can answer your questions or direct you to someone else who can," he continued as they made their way gradually up the Mansion's driveway in the direction of the main entrance.
"Not always," the Czech mutant allowed with a slight shrug as they moved among the areas where clothing were, bypassing the shoes entirely. "The streets may be your environment, but this is mine and I will not tolerate being treated differently just because I look different. That is unacceptable. Now, if I were to be wandering around like a drunkard and making a scene then they would be quite right to hurry me away. Since, however, I am not I will browse at my leisure and my leisure might be just a bit longer now than it would have been otherwise," he finished, leaning over to look at a pair of suspenders.
"They do not seem to have these in my size," he said, laying them aside. "I need a new pair to replace the ones that were lost by British Airways. Most people do not realize that suspenders are a part of a tuxedo, at least in some cases. I need to be properly attired when called on to attend soiree's that my father occasionally hosts in his line of work." Having wandered most of the store he finally led Tses over in the direction of the colognes and perfumes.
"Holy... do people really pay this much for just something that smells nice?"
"Oh yes, and sometimes quite a bit more," Mariusz said a bit distractedly, looking through the shelves. "Of course, one of the nice things about being feathered is that a bottle of this will last me a year, or more. It permeates the feathers I spray it on and will last, in a lingering fashion, for three or four days. So, a bit pricey, but when looked at that way it is really only a few dollars a month. I do not bathe in cologne." He looked along the shelves and selected the sample bottle of Acqua Di Gio and spritzed a tiny amount onto one of his leather gloves then held out his hand for her. "What do you think of this one?"
"I was born this way, more or less," Mariusz called down from his position as the eye in the sky. It occurred to him that it would be a lot easier for them to communicate without giving their positions away as readily if they both had headset radios and he made a mental note to bring up that point with Maya after the exercise. "I have always had the wings, feathers, bird feet, and mostly hollow bone structure. The talons on my feet started growing in when I was three, the talons on my fingers when I was seven, and I got the vision enhancement when I was fourteen."
The winged man hovered in the air over the rough position where Maya was, turning his head this way and that looking for anything that gave off the appearance of being a target. He was just about the ask Maya exactly what it was that she could do when he turned to the west and saw what appeared to be several small birds taking flight. "Looks like there is something to the west," he called down to Maya, focusing his gaze in that direction. The foliage of the trees was preventing him from having a completely clear line of sight, but the glimpses he was catching were of something that was impossible because it was mythological.
"It looks like a minotaur," he yelled down to Maya, "but minotaurs are mythological. Looks to be a half-mile out, and coming closer." The Czech mutant drew the bowstring back to his cheek and waited, hovering the midair. Most archers used some kind of ocular enhancement or scope on their bows, but he had no need for such a device. The thing, whatever it was, lumbered into a small clearing and stopped, apparently sniffing around.
Mariusz loosed an arrow aimed for the head, but just before the arrow struck the thing lift a hand to scratch its nose. The arrow slammed into the hand and the creature jerked fast enough that even though the arrow went through the hand it struck the thing in the shoulder as it continued on, effectively pinning the creature's right hand to its right shoulder. The minotaur thing roared in anger and pain. "I hit it, and now it is quite angry," Mariusz called down to Maya as the thing began to run in the direction that the arrow had come from.
Mariusz stood just outside the entrance to a bar called Shadow's Light, as the neon sign proclaimed the name of the establishment. Throughout the course of the afternoon and and evening he had heard several people suggest, some more politely than others, that someone like him might be a bit happier or might belong better at a place called "Shadow's Light" after asking around he had managed to find out the location of the bar and directions on how to get there. Now, here he was standing outside the entrance. Admittedly, the place was not 5th Avenue, Times Square, or Broadway but it did not seem to be too terrible of a part of town. Still, he did not feel too out of place in his brown three piece suit. After examining the door and sign a few seconds longer he pushed open the front doors and entered.
One thing was immediately apparent, this was very much a bar that was a mutant hangout. While Mariusz knew he was physically mutated it was quite obvious that he was not the only person in the establishment with a physical mutation. There were a few people that looked up when he entered, but none of them really spared him a second glance. He made his way over to the bar and found an empty seat and waited for the bartender to get around to him, his eyes scanning the various televisions and looking for something worthwhile in the way of sports on. That meant hockey, it was the only sport they played here in America with regularity that was worth watching and he had taken the time to figure out the local teams, since he would need to find another one to watch here.
"Ahoj, Miss," he said with a slight English accent, his feathers ruffling a little as he signaled to the bartender, "are the Rangers playing tonight," he asked omitting what he would have liked to add, namely that he hardly considered basketball, boxing, and the MMA competitions on the televisions over the bar to be sports. Somehow it did not seem that it would be overly diplomatic to say such things in a bar.
"Is a cage truly a cage if you can leave it any time you wish," Mariusz asked, arching an eyebrow at her. "After all a cage, by definition, is something that restricts freedom but if you always retain that ability to leave and go where you will when you will," he continued, following along with Tses and keeping an eye out for the right place. "And what causes you to say that 'rules are shackles'."
"Of course people are many shades of many colors, I myself am certainly more than one," he continued, coming to a stop before the doors that led into Giorgio Armani. "It is in discovering the colors of each of those individual mosaics is part of the fun of life," he continued, pulling open the door to the store so Tses could enter the store first. "I should be able find some of the things I am looking for in here."
Once they were inside the store they were quickly approached by a representative. "Is there something I can help..."
Mariusz raised a hand to cut the man off. "As you can see I am impeccably dressed. That means that I have money, despite the fact that I am a mutant. If you must know, I am the son of the Czech Ambassador. Surely, you are bright enough to figure out what that means," the winged and feathered man said a bit waspishly, waving a hand dismissively at the sales representative. "Now then, unless you would like to cause something of a scene I would suggest you scurry along to harass some other customer that you or your manager may find objectionable. We will browse and, should we require the assistance of the staff we will be sure to let you know." The man tried, and partially failed, to hide an expression of disgust and turned on his heel and left.
"Another little color of that personal mosaic is revealed," he asked, arching an eyebrow at Tses. "Now, I imagine what I am looking for is in that direction," he pointed to the left, "so, let us venture in this direction instead," he continued, leading her off to the right. "My presence makes them squirm a bit, and I find it somewhat offensive that they were so quick to want to find what I wanted and usher me out. So, shall we?" With that final remark he headed off in the opposite direction of the one that he had indicated, leading them away from the area of the store where the perfumes and colognes were quite deliberately.
Mariusz nodded in response to what Tses was saying. "Yes, I can certainly see why you might hesitate to mention the fact that you are a mutant. The world is not always the most welcoming to those who are different, history certainly proves the truth of that statement. Still, I might have thought you would have at least mentioned it a bit sooner given that we both belong to the same group, in a manner of speaking. Still, it is hard to find fault with the display of caution as it has, no doubt, served you quite well in the past."
"As for the cologne, I never said anything at all about having a hot date did I," Mariusz asked in a bit of a playful tone. "That does not mean, of course, that it is imprudent to not be prepared for any eventuality. It is also wise be prepared for uninvited guests and surprise dinner functions. A side affect of growing up as I did," the Czech man admitted with a shrug while keeping up with the blonde woman.
He watched as she darted out into traffic a few seconds before the light changed. Tses might find such a thing interesting and invigorating, but Mariusz chose to wait for the light to completely change before heading across the street with the rest of the New Yorkers that were waiting at the street corner. "If your powers are potentially dangerous then you owe it to yourself and others to learn to harness them to the best of your abilities, for the protection of others as well as your own," the winged man said earnestly, convinced that the best place for Tses would be at the Mansion with others that were like her.
"The amount of formal education you have is irrelevant and the mansion is located on quite a large piece of property. It would be almost impossible to feel cooped up and stuck there, and even if you did there are plenty of avenues to take to get out for a bit," he continued, his wings fluttering just slightly, though he was careful to make sure he did not inadvertently knock anyone over.
"I am certain that you would find acceptance there. Surely you cannot enjoy always having to hide who and what you are, would you not prefer to be in a place where you can be yourself? I think you like to play at being the street smart, world wise, devil may care wonder woman... but there is more to you than that I think."
"I suppose it is not that big of a surprise. Not all mutants are as outwardly different as I am," Mariusz allowed, regaining his composer and taking the last sip of his own drink before depositing the cup in the trash can where it joined Tses'. "Still, I would have imagined you would have mentioned that fact when we first, quite literally, bumped into one another." Considering his hands to be clean enough, he removed his gloves from the pocket of his jacket and pulled them back on. While he could do nothing to hide that he was a mutant the gloves at least might help give the appearance that the feathers were confined to his face and wings.
"As for cologne, it is really quite simple. Cologne is, essentially perfume for men. A woman's input is needed to know which scents work best of a man," he continued, shrugging his shoulders slightly. It made perfect sense in some ways, after all the whole point of cologne was to appeal to the opposite sex. Or the same sex, if that was your thing, which for Mariusz it most assuredly was not. "As the whole point of cologne is to appeal to the opposite gender surely you can see the import of a woman's opinion," he continued with a small smile.
"So, now that you have mentioned being a mutant will you tell me exactly what it is you can do," Mariusz asked, steering the conversation back towards mutants. "I am actually living in a place right now that is specifically for mutants. It is a school of sorts, and also a haven. I am sure there would be plenty of room for you there, if you were so inclined."
