Welcome !

[Aspen]

"No! What have the humans done to us? They barely know our existence!"

"Aspen, they were about to take us out! Are you truly that naive?! They would have you on those lab tables, picking you apart! They pollute the waters, and not care at all about anything! They deserve to perish."

"Then you leave me no choice...Father. You forget I was RAISED by humans, people who cared about me. I would rather live with them and try to make the world better than watching the rest of you Blacks try to exterminate them! This ends NOW!"

It was a bittersweet moment for the Blue/Black hybrid woman, but there was no way she was letting these 'people' ruin the only home she had known. Captain Matthews had taken her in and raised her as his own; no one else came to explain anything until several years back...and now knowing just who she was and what she could do... Aspen Matthews wasn't going to take this lying down. She summoned the power within her and blasted her biological father and the rest of his Blacks with so much force...

...before coming to in her own bed, dry and safe. Glancing around quickly, the young woman sighed in relief as the waves crashed softly on the small section of private beach that she owned. Sunlight streamed in from the east, filling the room with a soft golden light. "Just a dream. A nightmare that's long since been over..." Aspen murmured softly, but knew that as long as Ragher was still alive, it would never be true. The slender brunette got out of bed and started fixing herself some breakfast and coffee, somewhat eager for a calm day...both outside in the world and inside her mind.

[Remy LeBeau]

The water on the beach had a nice, hypnotizing sound – he felt himself relaxing more and more. He enjoyed swimming, with lazy, but concentrated strokes, he propelled himself forward, until he had no other choice than to return to the sandy beach.
When he lay back on the sandy ground, he could not help, but groan. His shoulder. He still felt it. Still felt the pain, as the bullet hit him there. He almost remembered, like it was yesterday.

They were on a team, tried to end the war once and for all, which ended in heavy resistance and him and his team being under attack. His colleague from the X-Corps, Traceless, found himself being hit by multiple bullets in the chest. That would put him out of the business for the next weeks and, although he regenerated, nevertheless, he was put into hospital, later.

He, Remy, had been hit in the shoulder, which was painful, but compared to other members of his team, a minor inconvenience. And of course, they could not stop the war once and for all, that was a later mission, in which he did not participate. So, his wound was entirely pointless.

He let himself sink on the sand, allowed his mind to drift.

[Aspen]

After taking care not to burn herself on the heated liquid, Aspen sat down and sipped at the dark-colored beverage, glancing out the window toward the ocean. It was far too peaceful here; just the way she liked it. Considering the circumstances several years back, peace was a nice change of pace from the usual butt-kicking she did as Fathom with the New Defenders. But even then, that got tiring considering it was pretty much near the same thing day in and day out, although she preferred helping humanity than those that wanted to simply use her as a tool for their own nefarious reasons.

Stepping outside, she took a deep breath of the salty air before noticing that someone was on the beach. Normally she didn't mind too much even though it specifically said that it was a private beach...but in this instance... Setting her cup down, the brunette jogged to the edge of the shore, the figure becoming easier to see with each step. A dark-haired young man greeted her vision, and from the looks of things, was pretty hurt, although in the shoulder. Grimacing, she reached into the shoulder and looked for the bullet, before using some of her aquakinesis to help push it out, as well as to clean the wound. Sure the salt water in the wound would hurt like hell, but it was better than nothing at this point in time. "You alright? Can you hear me?" She called out, gently shaking his uninjured shoulder. Aspen glanced around, unsure of just where this stranger came from.

[Remy LeBeau]

Remy looked at the woman, who actually got the bullet out, which had bothered him in months. Fascinating. No one was able to do so, besides her.
Nevertheless, the pain was ... excuriating. He moaned, threw his head back and screamed, then - it was all better.

So, he smiled at her.
“Yeah, I am fine, thanks to you, thank you very much.”
With that, he got up, and stretched out his hand in order to shake hers.
“I have seen you, haven`t I? Did we meet somewhere? Maybe in battle, against the Anti-Phoenix or something?”

He saw, that she glanced around and did so, too.
“Are you looking for something? I am – Remy LeBeau, but in the Xcorps, they call me “Gambit”. Maybe you heard of me?”

Again, he moaned, when he felt the pain shortly flaming through his entire body.

[Aspen]

Once the bullet was out, Aspen had to make sure that this wasn't some setup; considering the last few times she had been taken advantage of for her powers, and she never wanted to go through that again. The young man had managed to sit up and introduce himself, and from the moment the first word was spoken, he was definitely strange. Xcorps? Anti-Phoenix? Gambit? Just what the hell happened while she was in self-seclusion?

"Aspen Matthews." She briefly said. "Never heard of those or whatever. Lived out here for some time now...sort of a 'home away from home'." Until she could trust this 'Gambit', the aquakinetic hybrid wasn't going to say anything else, but she had to get back inside. "Can you get up? My house isn't far, just over there." The sooner I get inside, the better I will feel. Aspen thought to herself. If his story held up, then maybe she could trust him with the truth.

[Remy LeBeau]

Remy looked at the woman, tilted his head and furrowed his brow.
“You … don`t have any idea, what happened in the last 5 years?”, he said, got up and nodded, when she asked him, if he could do so, and that her house would not be far.
“Okay – I guess, we should go then. After all, you most surely know, whom to trust, and whom not to?”

He shrugged, looked at her.
What had happened. Was he wrong? Didn’t he know her?
Maybe it was just the aftereffect of her, drilling in his shoulder, but, he had the feeling, that he knew her.
But maybe, he was wrong.

[Aspen]

Leading the way, Aspen opened the door to her home and gestured inside. It was a quaint, one-bedroom house along the shore, with a living room/kitchen rolled into one, and a spot where plenty of marine-related photos and such were lying around. "Pardon the mess." She muttered, trying to organize some of those items for a place to sit down. But what was that he said about knowing who to trust and who not to trust? Did he know her somehow? And if so, from where?

"Can I get you anything? Coffee, water, milk? Don't have much, I'm afraid. Haven't had the chance to get to the store." She shrugged while pouring a second cup of coffee for herself and added a bit of creamer. "So, Remy, is it? What brings you out here to the sunny West Coast? And to answer your question, no. I don't know. I had my own issues to worry about....family issues." Aspen sat down and sipped at her coffee, debating on telling him the truth, but figured if he did know her - from somewhere - then he wouldn't be phased by her abilities, right? Worth the risk anyways...and apparently she couldn't keep herself in seclusion, even if she was part of the New Defenders.

"Needless to say, I've kept to myself despite the fact I'm part of a group. Issues with my particular talents possibly being used against humanity and all. So no, I know nothing about this 'Anti-Phoenix', or about some war or anything like that. Speaking of..." Aspen tossed him the bullet that was in his shoulder. "What the hell happened? Got the bad end of a gun somewhere? Or mugged? And what the hell were you doing in the Pacific Ocean anyways?"

[Remy LeBeau]

Remy followed the beautiful woman, back to her house, where she started to clean up, muttering, to pardon the mess. A small smile appeared on Remys lips: “Oh, no need to excuse yourself. I am not that organized, too. So, no problem.” With that, he looked around and nodded: “Nice appartement, you have here. And please don't put yourself to any bother on my account. I am just a friendly visitor.”

With that, he sat down, listened to her question and smiled: “Yes, Remy. What brings me out here, is a bit hard to explain. I am wandering around after all those bad things happening around. The supreme lords and stuff like that, so – I decided to take my time off and wander around.”
He shrugged, wincing a bit, because he felt the pain of the wound, in especially, when she throew the bullet at him.
He grabbed and inspected it: “Oy… What happened. Well – I was in the war. Third World War, maybe you heard of it? Caught a bullet and – to be honest, I just liked to swim, that is why I swam in the Ocean. But… this little thing here” – with that, he tossed her the bullet again – most certainly can bother, in especially, when no one seemed to be able to get the thing out. You are the first one, who really did it. Thanks a lot.”

Then Remy furrowed his brow: “And you never heard of all the things, that happened around here?”

[Aspen]

"Hey, you're a guest. So what else am I gonna do, leave you high and dry? No way." She shrugged and sipped at her coffee again. "Small, but cozy. Perfect for what I need it for anyways. Hate living away from the water." As if to give a hint as to why, Aspen turned on the sink faucet to let the water out just a trickle, then manipulated the water into her free hand in the shape of a few spheres of water before freezing them and tossing them back into the sink.

Aspen listened as Remy explained the situations that took place over the past few years. Sure she had heard about them, but knowing the possibility of her powers possible being used against humanity, the Blue had decided to stay out of it, knowing the price it could have been if she intervened. So she had been out here alone for the past few years, trying to hone her abilities to a point where her emotions wouldn't cause so much of an effect; the last thing anyone needed was a really powerful aqua-kinetic taking out the entire coastline and making New York City - or any other major city for that matter - into the next Atlantis. There was also apparently a third World War...at which some time after that, she joined the New Defenders hoping she could at least be useful in some aspect, although kept her water-related abilities sort of 'low-key'.

Catching the bullet he threw back to her, Aspen shrugged again. "Oh I've heard about it. Just didn't think that having someone with the ability to cause huge tsunamis on the fly would be much help...besides, as I said before, I had my own issues to work out." She sat down after finishing her cup. "Long story short, I was orphaned at a young age, had a real love for water stuff, took part in the Olympics back in '88 - won a gold medal too, but they thought I doped myself so they took that away, grew up and became a marine biologist, and apparently was told that I'm a member of a nearly-unheard of aquatic race. Needless to say, 'Daddy' was a part of a different one, and wanted me to join his cause in taking out humanity. Kicked his ass after telling him off, and have pretty much been here since. And personally, Despite me not wanting to be away from any source of water, I'd rather not get so hot-headed that I completely waste part of the US on a whim. So this is my sanctuary, my place to get a grip on things and work on fine-tuning my talents."

[Remy LeBeau]

When the woman showed her powers, Remy rose an eyebrow. “Interesting. Water manipulation.”, he said, “I did not notice it, earlier.”
With that he rose and, while he listened to her story, he looked around. She really was a marine-biologist, the certificate on the wall corresponded with her story.

He turned around, when she called this place her “Sanctuary” and nodded.
“It most likely does its purpose, right? You are secluded – well, mostly, besides when a guy decides to swim outside and ends up on your beach.”

Remy smiled at her, went to the window and looked outside: “This, I call a view. More beautiful it can only get, when a beautiful woman is walking in front of it. Like you…”

Or Marie , he thought, remembered his girlfriend Rogue. Whatever had happened to her…
Again, he pulled himself together, looked at her and shrugged: “So, you do train here, right? How exactly? What is it, you do?”

Probably, she would fill the sink with water and experiment on her powers, but that was something, he really would like to see.

“But – you are a marine biologist… do they come to you, when they need help in – say marine… things?”
Curiousity was visible in his eyes and he hoped, that she would answer him.
If not – it was fine, too.

[Aspen]

"The reason you didn't notice it earlier, was because it was subtle. And it's not just water from the tap either. Due to my 'lineage' of two different aquatic races, I can maneuver - or even rip out - the water in anything, be it plant...or animal. I saw the bullet wound in your shoulder, and maneuvered the liquid in your body to force out the bullet, using some of the ocean water to clean it." Aspen answered, shrugging her shoulders again as he talked about how it helped her in seclusion. "Well, it's only secluded because I bought this strip of the beach. And it's more or less...think of it this way. I can welcome anyone on the beach and swim if they want to...they just have to leave when I tell them to...or else they get a big dose of ice-cold water." A small smile tugged at her lips before letting it die and hearing what else Remy had to say.

It did seem 'odd' for someone like her to become a marine biologist, but then again, thinking back...it only seemed natural. Since she couldn't compete in the Olympics again for fear of being found out, it was best to be 'normal' for a change, even if it meant no longer having to do what she loved, although she can easily swim for hours on the beach in her own little part of the world. The ocean technically was her back yard, but she had to be careful or else she would run into more of the Blacks or Blues or any other aquatic race wanting to 'convert' her to their cause...or any humans who had heard of her that would want to put her under a microscope and 'see how she ticked'.

Hearing Remy call her 'beautiful' made her blush a bit; hardly anyone called her that...not since her adoptive father did when she was younger. "I bet you say that to all the weird spontaneous medics that happen to have aqua-kinetic abilities." She teased before catching the rest of his statement. "Here mostly, but I'm part of the New Defenders. Sure they have a nice skyscraper in New York City...but I can't stand being from water; living several dozen feet from the surface of the world doesn't exactly cut it for me, you know? But if the group needs me, I'm there. As for what I do...well...I can do minor parlor tricks like what you just saw...up to..." It was here she went back to the front door that overlooked the ocean, and closed her eyes. Aspen placed both hands out and after a moment of two of concentration, had the next set of waves converging into one massive wave. She then moved her hands back, making it seem as if the waves were about to crash into the house, but just before the moment of impact, froze the whole thing.

Aspen waited for a moment to catch his reaction before unfreezing the gigantic wave and moving it back to its position, joining the rest of the water on the edge of the beach. "Mostly since I'm in 'such' great shape, I try and kick butt when need be. Aquakinetics help too; if someone's too strong, I can force them to their knees using the liquid in their body to do just that. I just gotta be careful I'm not electrocuted or fried...but even then sometimes I swear I'm unstoppable. They don't call me 'Fathom' for nothing."

[Remy LeBeau]

Remy looked at her, when she told, what she could do. Fascinated, he tilted his head again, looked at her and nodded in respect: “That sounds like a pretty cool power – manipulating water, to follow your will. So, that basically means, that you could even move tectonic plates, because of the molten magma underneath them?”

"Well, it's only secluded because I bought this strip of the beach. And it's more or less...think of it this way. I can welcome anyone on the beach and swim if they want to...they just have to leave when I tell them to...or else they get a big dose of ice-cold water.", she said and this forced Remy, to laugh heartly. Oh, he had not laughed that heartly in years.
“Sounds like you are a force, to be reckoned with, yes? And, I am mostly honoured to be invited in your little paradise island.”

Him calling her beautiful made her blush. He saw that and tilted his head: “Oh, ma cherie, no need to blush. In especially not about the truth. You are a beautiful woman.”
"I bet you say that to all the weird spontaneous medics that happen to have aqua-kinetic abilities.", she teased him and he smiled: “Oh, no, just to a special variety.”

Then things got a bit weird. At first, she told him about her being a member of the New Defenders, then she showed him, what else she could do – in form of a great… not just great, but gigantic , or massive wave, coming at them.
“WHOA, Lady”, he called out, but in that second, the water retreated.

"Mostly since I'm in 'such' great shape, I try and kick butt when need be. Aquakinetics help too; if someone's too strong, I can force them to their knees using the liquid in their body to do just that. I just gotta be careful I'm not electrocuted or fried...but even then sometimes I swear I'm unstoppable. They don't call me 'Fathom' for nothing." , she told him and he gulped, still stunned by the live-performence: „No, they do not. But – could you do me a favor and never scare me like that again? That was… I mean – ma cherie, I am sure, you have your powers under control, but… that was a massive shocker.”

[Aspen]

"No, not like that. It's gotta be water or a form of it. Magma's liquid rock, so I can't do jack with that...and even if I did have that power, why would i wanna freak everyone out by moving the continents?" Aspen placed a hand on her hip and stared at Remy upon asking this question. Needless to say, this guy was decent enough...especially when he laughed at her explanation to having visitors on the beach. "Hey pal, you were the one that came here, remember? Like I had an idea that some strange man with a French accent was going to show up out of the blue?"

So he claimed what he said was the truth, huh? Well that would be a first. "Last person that spoke something like that to me was when I was a kid. Sorta hard to picture oneself as 'pretty' when I can basically wipe anyone out like that." She snapped her fingers to emphasize her point. But the look on his face when she made that giant wave almost crash into the house was priceless. Now it was her turn to laugh; did he really think she would kill him and destroy her house here? Now that was a joke! If she wanted him dead, he would have been so long before this point, so there was technically nothing to worry about...at least on his end. As long he doesn't stab me in the back like almost any other person I've met...

"Sorry about that, didn't mean to scare you." Aspen replied, still chuckling over his reaction. "But really...like I would wipe out my house."

[Remy LeBeau]

Remy looked at her, when she said, that Magma was liquid rock – and what would she do with that power.
He had to admit, that she had a point there and nodded again: “Right – that’s true. And – I have to admit, I like it here. So – no, you could not know, that a french guy would show up, but I have to admit, I am glad for those accidents. Otherwise we would not have met, and that would be something, I would regret.”

He tilted his head and shook it then: “Oh boy, I did not mean to rhyme.”
"Last person that spoke something like that to me was when I was a kid. Sorta hard to picture oneself as 'pretty' when I can basically wipe anyone out like that."
“In essence, that is true”, Remy replied and smirked, “but – just because you have god-like powers, it does not mean, that you are not beautiful. I mean – look at the other superheroines out there. Wonder Woman, Supergirl…”
He thought shortly about Marie, but did not say her name loudly.
“And of course, there is you.”

When she chuckled, and said that she did not mean to scare him, he shrugged: “But – it was an overwhelming spectacle of nature, that is mostly for sure.”

[Aspen]

Accident? Just what exactly did happen around here? I heard about all that stuff on the news, but come on...at least things went well without my intervening. Aspen thought to herself, finally regaining her composure. But hearing him say that if he hadn't met her that he'd regret it made her start; since when did she turn into 'Miss Important Woman'? No one hardly came out here unless it was just the casual surfers, and even then, any New Defenders business she got by phone. She wanted to make sure that no one from her 'family' tried to get back at humanity, and that she felt someone was needed here on the West Coast. So this was her home for at least right now.

Again she blushed when Remy mentioned that she was beautiful and not just a powerful woman either, and made a short list of others similar to her, names she'd heard of only in passing. Sure Wonder Woman was strong, but she was a born-and-raised Amazon and knew of her past. Supergirl was technically an alien from a no-longer-existing planet and kin to one of the most powerful men on the globe. But her to be included with that paragon? Yeah, sure. At least I'm no pin-up poster in men's locker rooms or anything like that. French Boy, on the other hand...I'm sure he's got girls going gaga over him...especially with just that accent.

When he mentioned that her 'trick' with the wave was an 'overwhelming spectacle', she shrugged. "Hey, you were the one that wanted to know what I could do. Your fault for asking." Aspen teased. "Of course that all depends on what phase of the month the moon's in too."