War & Peace - United Nations Building

[Magneto- Erik Magnus Lehnsherr]

Victor von Doom, Lord and Sovereign Ruler of Latveria, stared darkly through the eye slits of his metal mask as he scanned the assembled representatives of the United Nations and the available members of the Meta-Human Council who sat eagerly awaiting his answer to their proposal.

They would not have to wait long…

“We will not adopt this act unless all information concerning every hero connected to this world wide initiative is shared openly with Doom!” He roared and slammed his metallic fist on the center podium where he stood to address the assemblage. To Doom this idea of a unified hero community to police the world under government oversight was laughable but if he could use it to his advantage in any way then he would play along for as long as the Doom deemed it fruitful. Then again the great and powerful Doom was no fool, far from it in fact and he knew before any answered what their response to his demand would be. It came as no surprise as Reed Richards himself raised a hand to quiet the bustling delegation from their shocked, confused and outraged whispers. Reed Richards, his greatest rival, his most respected enemy and perhaps the only one truly fit to address him among these assembled.

“With all due respect Doom what you demand is impossible for the rules concerning the Registration are clearly written out and unbreakable. The UN has agreed that the information concerning registrants is only for the eyes of the Meta-Human council and only under the direct supervision of Captain America himself, the one man all decided UN member countries and heroes around the world agree they can trust with such sensitive materials.” Reed Richards, Mr. Fantastic, spoke clearly and without hesitation to Doctor Doom where many others would shy away in fear of his powerful presence. “To disclose any information to you or any other without the individual consent of each said registrant would be a betrayal of all this act stands for.”

Richards words let alone his belief that Doom actually believed they would hand over any such information to him was enough to make him laugh out loud then turn his back in defiance on all assembled before him. “Let me make myself perfectly clear Richards and all of you fools who think yourselves on par with Doom. This act is a joke, an ill conceived one at that and Doom will not take part in it. Latveria does not need the protection of this fanciful, idiotic, pathetic idea of a world wide hero policing force or whatever you call it. No it is Victor von Doom who will protect his nation. In fact let Doom make himself even clearer! If even one of your Registered Heroes or SHEILD Agents enter one millimeter into my territories it will be taken as a direct act of war. If you trust in nothing else trust in one thing, War with Doom is a fools venture all here would forever regret… if any survived.”

[Iron Man - Tony Stark]

'I hate the UN. Are this many of them really surprised von Doom is reacting to the proposal this way? Sure, most ambassadors aren't exactly Reed Richards or I, but it doesn't take a genius to realize an arrogant megalomaniac like Doom is going to react unfavorably to any attempt to police his country for him.' Tony wasn't saying this out loud, but over his dataspine link, which he was also using to work on the Argonauts project while he sat in on this meeting.

'Arrogant megalomaniac, Tony?' a voice replied over his Extremis link, the young, female voice almost laughing at him. Friday had been different lately, it was slow, but he was noticing it more and more... she seemed more... human. Like a child almost, more than a computer.

'Victor von Doom makes me look like Ghandi, at least when it comes to the arrogance issue. And I'm an businessman, not a megalomaniac. Important distinction.'

'Norman Osborn?'

'Well, he's both. How's the response time?'

'Point-seven under prediction'

'Damn. I'm even better than I think I am.'[/color]

'Congratulations, Ghandi. Going to pay any more attention to your important, potentially world-altering meeting?'[/color]

'Multitasking, Friday. Been doing it since before you executed your first FLOP.'

Tony spent a few moments watching as Reed continued on his speech, then lifted a brow slightly as the man sat, whispering. "I know you're a born optimist, Reed, but I'd just as soon have ignored Doom until last. Wait until he's under enough pressure from being the last country still not on the bandwagon before we start beating our heads against a brick wall. Sure, yours is rubber and bounces right off, and I wear a good helmet, but it still gets tiresome."

That said, though, he stood, dressed in uniform as the other members of the Council, like Reed, were - of course, for him that meant the Iron Man armor, though he kept the helmet removed, set on the desk in front of him, the helmet passing its own silent judgment as Tony's ice blue eyes met Doom's.

"I'm going to ignore, for now, the obviously unacceptable nature of your counteroffer, and move on to the more salient point of the matter - the Registration has turned into the most popular regulatory act since the NNPT, and before long, the countries who haven't already enacted it will follow the rest. When Latveria becomes the last holdout, filled with villains escaping registration in other countries, war will come anyway. You aren't an island in the world, Doom. Either you start playing ball with the rest of the world, or Latveria becomes the new North Korea, and you won't have China looking out for you. The economic fallout alone will cripple you inside a decade."

Doom might play at being so arrogant he was completely blinded to it, but Tony wasn't buying it. The man was making an entirely unreasonable offer for a reason - did the man actually want a war with the rest of the country? Doom had a number of tricks up his sleeve, but historically he couldn't manage to defeat Reed on his own, much less Reed plus the Avengers and SHEILD backing him. Latveria, while abnormally strong for it's size, couldn't stand in a war with the rest of the world. There was more going on here than the man behind the faceplate was going to let on, but that was par for the course with Doom... which was just another reason it was nice to have Reed around.

[Magneto- Erik Magnus Lehnsherr]

What Tony Stark did not know as he made his own speech was what first made the man dressed in a black cat like uniform grimace for a moment under his mask. It pained him to have to speak up now but it was now or never and he had to wonder if Doom had planned this, if perhaps in some unknown and remarkable way the great villain had prior knowledge of his decision which in itself would mean far worse things for himself and perhaps the world. Only he and his queen had finally come to this decision in the secrecy of their bed chamber and though she did not fully agree with his decision she would not let slip his intent here today. Never the less he had to go on…

“It loathes me to say this… more so then many of you could ever know or understand...” A familiar voice resounded around the halls of the UN as the black attired man with piercing yellow eyes, which surveyed the room and took note of both ally and enemy alike, stood and made himself visible to all who watched and listened. “As a former Avenger and a ruler of a nation with political views quite different then Latveria… like freedom for its people for instance.” T’Challa’s glare turned to Doom for a moment before softening and returning to his addressing of the United Nations and his heroic peers. “I unfortunately concur with Victor von Doom. Wakanda must take a similar stance. Perhaps not as severe and veiled in threats as the Lord of Latveria’s we none the less must appose this registration act and demand that, unless invited, no registered hero or affiliated individual enter the sovereign land of Wakanda. It is my feelings that this act goes against all the freedoms we of the hero community have fought decades for and even if my former allies have adopted it freely, I must make my stand for what I believe in.”

It hurt the great African hero to go against his friends and allies and sickened him to his stomach to agree with Dr. Doom, a man he and the other Avengers and heroes of the world had fought against many times to foil his evil plans but The Black Panther had to go with his heart. He had followed it before in abstaining from membership in Iron-Mans Illuminati and that act alone had spared him many repercussions which may or may not have put his people in jeopardy. That alone though was not enough to take this radical stance, no the King of Wakanda had gone over the document many times before reaching this decision. He had researched it in depth and discussed it with several members involved and statesmen within his lands though never once revealing to them his secret reservations. Indeed he had even taken the impeccably wizen advice of his Queen Ororo into consideration but in his mind and heart T’Challa felt strongly that this act was far too dangerous. There were too many liabilities, too many holes and not enough safeties in place to protect all involved. So reminiscent of similar acts drafted against super powered beings like mutants over the years… how could he trust it when his own beloved had been persecuted and fought against such acts coming about for much of her life? In the end it came down to one fact, that though his identity was no secret to the world he would not force any within his kingdom with powers to give theirs up if they did not so wish it… he could not decide that for them, perhaps a slightly slanted view of the issue but it was his and none would change it.

“I am sorry Tony… this is just the way it must be.” His yellow eyes quickly turned to Iron Man, an ally whom over the years he had come to respect and trust greatly, waiting for some sign of shock or anger to come over the man if that were still possible for him. Even now, if he did not feel it wrong for a monarch to show such weakness in decision making, he would hang his head not shamefully but remorsefully for the unintentional betrayal he was forced by his own convictions to commit.

[cable]

Cable had been siting quietly at the back. Provenance was not that large compared with any were really. It was an island paradise or so cable hoped it would become. He had read everything ever written on this time period and this event. one thing he did have was the backing of several other country's that over the last year with his help had shot them self out of being third world and in to a respectable power in there own rights. There leaders knew that Cable Views held a lot of wight with the conman man. They would not win another election by going far agenst what he thought.

He listened to Reed, Stark and Doom then T’Challa’s. he smiled at this they all had valid points. Slowly he stood up several people stooped talking and started to take note. He knew they all owed him for helping pull them in to the modern age. it would be interesting how many of them would echo his options. From what he had glanced in there minds most of them would. It gave him more wight in what he was about to say.

" While i do not believe that anything good will come of registration. Any country that wishes to follow this Act have the right to do so. Providence will Not be forming a registration act of any kind. We will however allow Registered Heroes with in our island, BUT they must follow Our laws. I will not allow them to forcefully remove any one from the island. The same will go for shield. We are a save haven for all, I have not turned any one away. Nor will i ever turn some one away with out Due cause and evidence that it is for the best."

He had only ever kicked one person off the island and that was Wade, he still felt bad for doing it but he had killed some one. He had been disappointed in him knowing he could do better, But that was Wade choice not his to force on to his friend.

"I will not deport any unregistered meta humans to the U.S.A or any were else. IF they choice to live in providence they will be given every chance to follow OUR laws. I do not wish this to end in war in any way. Country's choices weather to take up the act is up to them and no one else. I would not be offended if people i have helped decided to take up the act or refuse it. They have the right of choice. I can however say that this Registration act is a mistake and will lead to ruin. Thank you for your time" cable sat down again, he noticed several people who were taking note of what he had said they knew they would have to take note of it when making up there mind after all it would be stupid to bite that hand that had given them so much tech for nothing more than a thank you.

[Green Goblin - Norman Osborn]

Norman Osborn smirked as he listened to Doom and Richards retort back and froth. It seemed the old adages were true, Old habits die hard and you can’t teach old dogs new tricks. At least he could depend on old metal mask to be predictable and of coarse Tony Stark to ever make his presence and opinion known especially in his flashy metal jammies… but it was the voice of T’Challa aka The Black Panther, king of the African country of Wakanda which surprised him slightly and made him truly pay attention. This he had to admit was an interesting turn of events and though he had his own plans in place today which would continue unabated he did wonder how this little tête-à-tête would turn out.

Even as the Panthers eyes turned to Tony so did Osborn’s. He wondered how the great Iron Man would take this startling news after making such bold statements only moments ago to the contrary. How foolish would he feel to now be rebuffed by one of his own… It was a priceless thought and he would laugh if it were appropriate. Instead he merely smiled darkly for a moment in his enemy’s direction, folded his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair a little in a more relaxed position.

The truth was he was not very worried about these small nations not supporting the Registration, though it meant that certain powerful individuals he hoped to control and manipulate had several refuges to choose from. Then again it was only a matter of time; eventually these places would fall… Asgard was in his back pocket with the Enchantress on his leash, Doom was also exploitable and with what he had planned for the man in the iron mask well… it would put him in his back pocket in no time. This only left Wakanda as Cables little island of Providence was not, as of yet, truly recognized by the UN as a true nation despite his so called contributions. T’Challa on the other hand was strong and respected by many… he had to wonder how long that would last now that the great African hero had decided to turn his back on his allies.

[Sage]

Sitting in the room silently, not having engaged anyone in conversation nor had anyone engage her in conversation. Sage was listening, just listening to what had been said by those in the room. It was interesting to hear their various positions on the registration, Doom's of course had been expected, as had Starks and T'Challa's for as much as she knew there was loyalty towards his former allies the rules which registration imposed would place boundaries upon his people and their freedom. Only when silence had settled again back over the room did she rise from her seat

"S.H.I.E.L.D of course will continue to uphold registration within the UN countries that have accepted it, However those that publicly make themselves refugee camps for the unregistered will suffer consequential backlashes" She wasn't making threats, no she was simply stating the obvious, the US government had already made their stance clear and where she sat was not really the most favorable position considering the middle was normally where things went wrong. She would however have to have a private talk with Cable after this meeting as his willingness to go against what she was forced to uphold would damage her position if it came to light she was employing his services while he was openly opposing the rules she was enforcing.

"As for the disclosure of registered individuals details, that is something i shall not allow unless it is in prior agreement of all meta council members so you can stop hoping for another thing on your wish list to be ticked off Victor" Yes there was a cold tone in her voice as she spoke so plainly to Doom but it was with the same tone she was addressing the rest of the members of the room also.

[Magneto- Erik Magnus Lehnsherr]

Doom said nothing despite the silent amusement he found in Reed Richards expression to T’Challa and Cable. He didn’t need any support in his statements concerning this foolish registration, in his opinion the two so called heroes’ opinions meant nothing in comparison to his. As for Tony Stark, the far from Invincible Iron-Man, and Sage, Director of the archaic organization SHEILD, he could only laugh darkly from behind his metallic mask. “Stark, Richards, Sage You are all far greater fools if you think Doom actually, for one minute, thought you may hand over such information. You did however have your chance at a peaceful resolution with Latveria. Never let it be said Doom was ever apposed to peace.” He smirked darkly and again turned his back on the assemblage allowing the green cloak which covered his head and back to flail out vividly. “I am done with this meeting… it is useless to speak to peons such as yourselves who will not listen to the reason and wisdom of their betters.” Again Doom dramatically flailed his cape, pulling it around himself tightly as he moved swiftly from the meeting chamber, ignoring the foolish ambassador of Latveria who shambled behind him meekly, only taking note that he should have the little man executed immediately for his weakness and replaced with a far better candidate as soon as possible. He would need a stronger voice in the Americas for his future plans.

“Victor, T’Challa, Cable… please be reasonable. The only way this act will effectively work on a world wide scale is if we all can find common ground and co-operate.” Reed stood, stretching his hand up exceptionally high for attention and quiet among all those who whispered as well as that of Doom who seemed to care little to nothing as he continued his way out, ignoring anything his rival had to say. This however did not deter Richards; if Doom would not listen then he would at least address the two whom he knew would at least listen if nothing else. “I will admit, the foundation the Registration Act was first built upon was shaky, there were many problems that resulted in a few battles between Hero and Hero. It could have escalated further were it not for Tony Stark and Captain America putting aside their differences and talking it out. Since then the Act has gone through several revision processes, the most recent being a world wide application process. There is irrefutable proof that world wide crime has dropped 35% since the majority of the United Nations accepted the act, US crime has dropped 65.376% alone and this number is rising. This act has allowed us to cooperate in ways never before dreamed of. No it is not perfect yet, no law ever is! But we can make it work and this act, if we all can cooperate and band together, may very well bring about a golden age for this planet.” Reed looked to Tony and then to Sage hoping that even in their expressions if not their words they would mirror his sentiment.

[Iron Man - Tony Stark]

"Peace on your terms is no peace at all, Doom. The world has seen that time and time again." Tony said, his voice miraculously not reflecting his contempt, "And Reed didn't even mention the drop in superhuman crime, which exceeds the total fall by twenty-three percent." Tony added when Reed had finished, standing beside his friend again, his expression severe. "The Act has made possible what most of us never even dreamed of. Under it, we finally have a real way to unite in the face of a planetary threat, and a way to ensure the world's superhumans can work together to ensure catastrophes, especially those caused by superhuman forces, can be stopped. I understand the ideals for which Cable and T'Challa have rejected the Act. Whether or not you realize it, I've been on both sides of the debate. It it not a betrayal of our ideals, but the extension and preservation of all we've fought for, including our ideals." he looked to T'Challa as he said this, then turned his gaze to Cable, "We have to keep the Act on the right path, to ensure the worst case scenarios some continue to speak of never come to pass. But to do that, this world's nations must unite as well. No matter how some may classify us, we are residents of the world's nations the same as anyone else, and for us to unite, the nations of the world must do so as well. This is no longer something being proposed out of fear, or vengeance for atrocities committed - this is planning and laying the groundwork for a future where this world can see peace. Reed and I, and those who stand with us, know this is the right decision. You all will need to see that for yourselves."

If he and Reed didn't stand together in these meetings, no one was going to follow them - for better or for worse, they'd gotten into this together, and he was going to back the world's smartest man to the hilt. Not that he was going to concede that debate to Reed until the man stopped losing to him at chess, of course.

But that, perhaps, was the difference between them. Tony could never have worked out the mathematics predicting the necessity of the act... and it was doubtful that Reed could have executed it properly on his own. The usual difference between a scientist and an engineer was precisely that relationship, after all. Tony was, for all his pioneering advances, more an engineer than a scientist. And Reed, for all he'd built, would always be the scientist.

Tony thought for a picosecond, then opened a comm channel to the earbud he knew T'Challa was wearing. Wakandan encryption protocols had always been impressive, which meant rather less to someone like Sage or himself, but instead of insulting the man by cracking them, he spoke on an old Avengers channel, one he knew the man would be listening on, and using Avengers encryption as well.

"And T'Challa... you have to do what you have to do. As do we. You made your call. Just remember that whatever happens from now on, the Avengers will not be able to aid you. You've cut yourself off... and you'll have to deal with that."

His voice was not angry, nor entirely sad, but there was a sort of finality behind it. What he said was true... mostly. While Tony doubted the Avengers, Steve especially, would stand by if Wakanda came under threat, with the country now isolating itself from the Initiative, it was no longer the jurisdiction of any group falling under the Act... as such, they had no authority to intervene, and those in power would almost certainly prohibit any aid to a country which had spurned the Act. Tony's speaking it to T'Challa would only reinforce it. The fact that Tony had used an old encryption to all but assure someone like Osborn would pick up on it, though, was the Panther's clue.

They'd known they would have to deal with Doom, and while Reed's tone still contained optimism that Doom would see reason, they'd known it would likely come to this where he was concerned. And, while T'Challa's continued lack of support was disappointing, it was little surprise to see him maintain the stance he'd taken since before the Civil War ever started. Tony still felt bad about the fact that neither he nor Steve had, at the time, been able to put their argument aside for his wedding, but Tony at least had hoped that when he and Steve HAD come to an agreement, T'Challa would follow. This apparently would not be the case... another reason Tony cursed the loss of those two years he spent in a coma. If he'd been awake, he could have talked to his friend and former teammate... then again, perhaps it would not have mattered.

As for Cable, well, he'd made his views perfectly clear from the start, hadn't he? The man had given him plans for a spectacularly advanced clean energy reactor, true (though based on a design Tony himself had invented), but Cable was not half foolish enough to expect that to affect Tony's determination on this issue. If he did, Tony would never build a single example of the tech. It wasn't worth it.

[Magneto- Erik Magnus Lehnsherr]

T’Challa listened to all around, taking in what they had to say, especially Tony Stark’s secret message through his hidden ear pieces under his mask. He eyed Iron Man from afar for a long moment, taking his long time ally in and considering his words carefully. If he were more hotheaded as he had been in his youth he mite have taken the warning as a threat but time and experience had mellowed the warrior king some and now he decided to only take it as it was… until I may be proven otherwise.

T’Challa nodded silently to Stark in response. A signal that he and his people would take the good with the bad. Wakanda would stand on its own and if its former allies would not heed a call for help if one were to come, despite making it clear that if asked or welcomes heroes of the registration would be allowed entry, they would fight even to the death if need be. Another silent action which any watching the two heroes could read came immediately after the nod as The Black Panther crossed his arms over his chest defiantly and once more stared forward with the unblinking yellow eyes of his mask. Until he could see that this Registration Act was truly safe and of benefit as so many claimed it to be he would stand by his principles and let fate and history cast its dice.

[Sage]

It was certainly far from impressive the way they all bickered amongst one another but it was to be expected in a group of such diverse people. One they had yet to hear utter a word was Osborn but again Sage had her suspicions as to why the man had not spoken up already. Tony and Reed had covered the positive aspects of the registration well in their speeches but other than those who opposed the act fully, no one else had spoken up to give a balanced perspective on it and it was for that reason she spoke up once more while her eyes looked around at all those gathered. "Yes the registration has proven successful thus far as Richards and Stark have so well said, I will not deny however that there are certain elements of it I do not agree with however in order to achieve a balance it is necessary and does work towards what we all..." she paused for a moment choosing to reword her previous statement "...does work towards what the majority of people in this room want and that is the greater good, do you who oppose this act not think that it was not without careful consideration and planning the act was passed before congress?" There was more she could add but she knew it would make little difference, those that opposed it had already stated their piece and who was she to question them, one thing was sure though and that was they would never see eye to eye and a certain body would have to keep a closer eye on those who did not accept it, lest they start to create problems within the area of her jurisdiction.

[Green Goblin - Norman Osborn]

Osborn took a positively sinful amusement as he noticed so many turn their attention and shaded comments towards him. He had however stayed silent for some time now during these proceedings. He figured that his say was not needed in any of this; Doom was doing fine on his own and the Heroes of the Registration were also making their side so perfectly and rigidly clear. In the midst of the chaos these visionaries of the future were soon to cause he was sure and ready to take advantage to the utmost of his power… and that power now was considerable and growing day by day. They were making the destabilization of the old order far easier than he could have hoped for and it would make the building of the new even simpler. He would start here, today with the announcement he had prepared and which this whole argument had so perfectly led up too.

Slowly Osborn stood and called for quiet and order in the meeting chamber. He waited till the talking, murmurs and whispers completely silenced, making sure to glare menacingly at any and all who dared to speak when he was about to. “Ladies and Gentlemen of the UN. It is clear from this argument that a majority, small as it is, still questions the Registration policy. Now as I support the Registration completely I also see their problems and can both understand and sympathize. For that very reason the President has decided, in the United States at least, to reinstate the Sentinel Project.” As soon as these words left his mouth people again began to clamor all over the chamber but any outbursts that may have occurred at this point were soon cut short as the lights slowly faded to a dim hue and a holographic projection descended from the ceiling. “Ladies and Gentlemen I give you the Sentinel 6 codenamed Omega. It has been designed to be the final solution in this any possible super-human debacle. These machines will act as a secondary line of defense for humanity and back up to the registered Meta humans when need be.”

“This model has many upgrades from previous Sentinel’s which have been employed in the past. Its technology is the latest in any market. In fact we have professor Richards to thank for this, the government owes you a great debt of gratitude. Along with Oscorp and even Stark tech which came into my possession when our dear friend Tony Stark was struck down and his company came into my possession. These the Omega Class Sentinel can stand up to any threat, human or otherworldly. It is the very definition of adaptable.” Osborn grinned darkly at Tony from across the room. What he said was true, some Stark tech was used or back words engineered in the production of this robotic warrior. Yes it was older tech, nothing close to his newer innovations which even now Osborn was struggling to copy but the tech and weaponry was still decades ahead of most anything out on the market to date. As the very word adaptable was spoken the hologram fluctuated to show a thicker armor plating quickly encase the Sentinels body, a multi-spectrum vision device engage over one of its ocular centers. Shield generators emerged from its shoulders in an almost fanciful dance of wires and metal and lastly high powered, massively destructive weapons sprouted forth from its wrists, sides, chest, hands and other sections of its body.

“This is one of several modes the Omega can engage. As you can see though from this one transformation alone it is formidable to say the least.” Osborn paused and let the whole room marvel at the new weapon before them, hoping that this would also make it clear to other countries that the United States was once again at the head of the ever growing arms race and that if they wanted the same protection these machines would give they would need to pay through the nose and also agree to their terms, some of which he would write himself.

“Now, I know what many of you are thinking. We have had trouble with these machines before. They have been killers. Hunters of meta-humans across the world, especially those of mutant kind. This is true… I will not deny it, the Sentinel project was originally designed and implemented to hunt and eradicate mutants. A sad short sighted use for these marvelous machines, especially when they fell under the control of the artificial intelligence Master Mold, a mistake I can assure you will never happen again. These machines are far more suited to the role of guardians and protectors of the people, but they must at all times be under the control of the governments who employ them. In the case of the United States I, Norman Osborn, in the capacity as Director for the Commission of Superhuman Affairs have been charged to oversee and head the new Sentinel Program. I hope that the Mutant and Super Hero Community will… rest well… knowing that now they have backup to call and rely upon in the hands of a trusted representative of their government. I also hope that the world at large and most especially those countries who oppose the registration see that there are alternatives and backups that can be implemented in order to keep the world peace and continue to allow us to build towards a more peaceful planet with solidarity for all men.”

At this Osborn again took his seat while the hologram disappeared and the lights rose again. He made it a point to look first to Stark and then Sage before moving his eyes to T’Challa, Doom, Cable and the rest of the assemblage. All things were falling into place and no matter how hard they fought he would win in the end, a fact of life these people would have to come to live with or die in the attempt to stop him.

[Magneto- Erik Magnus Lehnsherr]

Doom cared not for Osborn’s little announcement for he already had his own robotic warriors, The Doom Bots, to protect and police Latveria. If these Sentinels were to become a problem in the future he had other ticks up his sleeve which would make these mechanical giants an ineffectual weapon against him. That in mind he was surprised, though he would never admit it, to hear that Richards had taken part in the design of these steel giants, even if unwittingly. That coupled with the genius of Norman Osborn and past accomplishments Tony Stark made these impressive automatons. He would have to make a point of dissecting one of these in the future to learn their secrets.

Wishing to be no more a part of this farcical little meeting of peace he made his way out of the chamber completely with another dramatic flair of his cape. He made his way into the main lobby of the UN building where both reporters sat in wait for those within and where his Doombot bodyguards stood as silent sentries only moving as they sensed their master’s approach. As he stepped into the hall completely the Doombots moved immediately to his side and walked out into the light of day where more reporters waited and immediately started to take his picture as the lord of Latveria took his first steps onto the steps of the UN.

Doom glared at these pathetic peons and would have liked nothing more than to order his drones to open fire on the crowed of people. Unfortunately as per his agreement to enter the country and take with him the robots as guards, his armor and the robots primary offensive capabilities were deactivated and checked by Reed Richards himself once he had landed.

“Damn Richards and his infernal unending medaling” He grumbled under low enough for none to hear as he moved down another step and glared at those who shouted questions at him. “Silence! Doom will not be answering any of your inane questions. Your incessant blather is offensive to Dooms ears. Now move aside before I have my Doombots move you!” he shouted out making sure that the broadcasting of through his metallic mask was at its maximum so all could here. “I will not give you another…” His final word would have been warning but he was immediate cut off by the explosion of his royal limo behind the reporters and spectators. This explosion immediately caused all those around to fall to the ground or run in fear yet Doom stood completely still as he glared angrily at his car. “Who has done this!! They will pay!!!”

[Iron Man - Tony Stark]

Osborn HAD been silent for most of the time, and Tony didn't care for it one bit. A silent Norman Osborn was one who was plotting, or waiting for the right time to strike. Tony preferred him these days when he was out hounding for all the glory in a more obvious fashion rather than waiting with what Tony was certain was a very carefully repressed grin as he waited for the correct time. Tony very carefully avoided looking at him, and glanced over to Sage as she spoke... just confirmation, as expected - he'd not really thought her the type to get involved in this sort of bickering, and he was rather glad for it. The less grandstanding she allowed herself to do, the better... rather, perhaps, the less she was interested.

Osborn finally stood, though, and Tony turned his ice blue eyes to the man, doing his best to avoid any overt expression of distaste - something he wasn't able to maintain when Osborn started talking about the Sentinel project. Magneto was going to be pissed.

Very. Pissed.

Tony actually almost cracked a smile at that particular thought... at minimum, Tony was probably Magneto's closest ally among the meta-human Council... which at least meant when these Sentinel's did crack, he'd hopefully have on his side the man on Earth best-suited to crushing them like so many empty beer cans. Beer... dammit, he felt very strongly like he could use one of those... bad time to be thinking about it.

Which brought him back to the actual design in question... he opened his subvocal channels again. Friday... I'm sending you all the data Osborn's presenting about his new class of Sentinel.

Sentinel!? Is he ins- oh, wait, forgot who we were talking about... storing data, you want me to collate?

Please. And hit Stark Enterprise's data servers... don't go after anything too well protected, but I know Osborn will be sending out a message to the stockholders as soon as this meeting is over, check the outbound queues...

Affirmative... Got it. Transmitting.

Thanks... will let you know if I get anything else out of this. [/color]

Tony closed the channel, using a small portion of his brain to listen to Osborn blather on while he used the rest to analyze what specs he had on the Sentinels... it might warrant a more concerted hacking attempt later, but if Osborn was smart - and, sadly, he was - he would be keeping the actual designs in servers with no hardline connections to any external networks... meaning no matter how good a hacker Tony was, he wasn't getting in, even using every one of the several quantum computing arrays that composed Friday's primary CPU... she had an enormous amount of brute processing power, but she was still young - a child in many respects, and not experienced enough for this... not her fault, but sometimes he wished she'd hurry.

But these Sentinels... no matter what Osborn said, these specs were for killing machines. They might have nods to nonlethal tactics, stasis grids and the like, but they were weapons, pure and simple... weapons which still looked and acted like machines that had been hunting Mutants for decades. How the mutants, at the Academy and elsewhere, were going to react to this... and that was only half the issue. They might be rough cudgels compared to his Argoes, but Osborn meant to mass-produce the damned things, and they DID have a lot of firepower, assuming it all worked...

Just going to have to count our lucky stars he didn't manage to get his hands on any of my repulsortech generators or weapons... these things would be far worse than they are...

He pushed himself up when Osborn finished, ignoring Doom's departure, and shook his head. "This is a bad idea, Osborn. Whether or not you've been rooting through the old refuse bins at my company for my old tech, you've still based the core of this project around the old Sentinel framework, and you're planning on running these things autonomous? The Sentinel project has an abysmal track record for malfunctions, and no matter how pretty a face you want to put on this, most of those malfunctions have resulted in the deaths of God only knows how many people. To say absolutely nothing of the morale effect this will have on the Mutant population simply beca-"

He turned towards the entrance as the sound of the explosion rocked the building, and he snatched his helmet off the table, pulling it on and booting up the rest of the armor's systems as he made for the doors. He burst out into daylight, armor gleaming in the sun, and saw the smoldering wreckage... Doom was fine, though.

Sadly, part of him thought.

"What happened here!?"

[Sage]

Sage was not in the surprised in the slightest with Osborn’s little announcement nor with how Tony Stark reacted. These were all inevitable in her mind; the world was going down this road nevertheless though it did not surprised her it did disturb her some. Events like this transpired to cause the future in which her long time ally Bishop had come from and has also caused, somewhat indirectly, the near Civil War they had just barely avoided. The power of Norman Osborn was growing steadily and that was the most disturbing thing of all. That much power in one man’s hands was dangerous enough but in a man like Osborn… that was downright unthinkable. Yet it was a fact… The US government had seemed to somehow fallen into Norman’s pocket, He had, for now, cornered the market on technological and chemical weapons, SHIELD though under her direct command was overseen by the bastard as were the now legalized super-powered teams to some extent and all this seemed to be the tip of the iceberg. Again none of this surprised her but she had to cringe even just a little when she thought of what Magneto and Bishop would do when they found out about this… Her computer like brain could already work out several dozen scenarios and none of them were very appealing to her sensibilities, the worse being having to protect Osborn from any vengeful retribution he mite incur if he used wholly legal means to suppress her own people with these mechanical monsters.

Could she do that?...

Was her position as SHEILD Director worth turning her back on her people… her friends… her family?

It was everything she had ever worked for all those years as Xavier’s secret agent, spying on the Hellfire club, and working with the X-Men, then Excalibur… everything she went through with Albion and becoming Diana Fox. Hell she had already lost herself once and truly now possessed what some would consider Multiple Personality Disorder, Britannia was a real part of her now and that was even more startlingly real to her since her fight with SHEILDs newest accusation Damien McLeod. He had… unlocked a door, for lack of a better word and she now was fighting to keep it closed. No one would know this, she would never permit that, but her mental faculties were shaken some. All that aside she had joined SHEILD and now she, Sage, a little mutant girl from a war torn country was at its helm, the question still remained what would she do when this little coup of Osborn’s had run its course.

The explosion outside immediately caught the Director’s attention and though she showed no outward signs of surprise or concern she had to wonder what in the hell was going on now. She took a moment to smirk as she watched Tony Stark make his move… always the Incredible Iron Man but she herself had to see what was going on. She moved from her place among the now cowering UN delegates and pushed her way into the hall mentally ‘persuading’ people to move out of her way. When she stood in the main reception area of the UN building with its wall of windows and glass doors looking out the front of it she could see Iron Man hovering in air ready for action and Doom standing before the remains of what seemed to be his personal limo in flames. “Interesting…” She whispered to herself at several more scenarios ran through her mind all leading to the conclusion that Doom was now the target of an assassination attempt. Now this was not hard to tell but the scenarios she was running through were to determine the likely culprit. She knew many who wanted the man in the iron mask dead. Several in this building in fact…

Reed Richards always claimed only his wish to stop Doom and at most reason with him if possible… yet she could and would not put it past the genius to truly wish to stop Doom at all costs. Doom had after all done so much to harm Richards and his family. It could have been easy for him to set something like this up. Then again a car bomb was so un-technical, not Reeds style. However that could be the whole point.

She turned to look to Reed who for the most part was trapped back in the meeting chambers but had managed to stretch the upper portion of his body out into the main lobby to view what was going on. Yes he was suspect but still very unlikely.

There was Stark himself. No love lost between him and Victor von Doom. Doom International was an international competitor of Stark Enterprises and when it came to technical expertise they were, at one time, near on par until Doom turned his attentions to magic. That was the lowest reason, the biggest being that Doom was as much an enemy to Iron Man and the Avengers as he was to the Fantastic Four. The all had clashed many times. Stark however had more than enough to contend with now. Hood, before his disappearance, had caused Tony a lot of trouble especially with the rogue Wasp on his side; this along with all his troubles with Norman Osborn made Doom an extremely unlikely target for Stark.

Next was the US Government itself. She looked around the room. She could see many agents of the FBI, OIC, NSA and CIA in the room. Some of them undercover and others in the standard dress with badges and sunglasses… cliché in her eyes. She could tell every one of them in the room undercover or not. Many of them could be behind such an act, it was far from above the United States to use Terrorism as a tactic even when promoting themselves as the most Anti-Terrorism country in the world. …Coughbullshitcough… Doom had done so much against the United States of America it was surprising they would still let him in and afford him a measure of diplomatic immunity as long as he left all his weaponry outside the country. This could have been the perfect opportunity to take him out of the picture once and for all but she had heard nothing floating around the government grape vine about any such operation. Not much got by her when it came to official and most unofficial channels.

Osborn was the next on the possible list in her mind. He had a lot to gain from taking out Doom right now. Like Stark Enterprises, Oscorp was another competitor of Doom International and an aggressive one at that. Not to mention on the ladder of villains Doom and Osborn were both in the same league and seemed in competition for the coveted bastard of the millennium award. But other than these it did not seem that any of Osborn’s plans, machinations or maneuverings that she knew of were in opposition to Doom. I mean she would not put world domination past the ‘former’ Green Goblin as she, being one of the very few people in the world, knew him to be but at the moment it seemed to her, for now, Osborn was only primarily interested in the United States.

Lastly was SHEILD, her own organization. Doom and Nick Fury, her former superior, hated one another to the core. Hell Nick Fury had gone so far as to brain wash several prominent heroes and conduct a Secret War against Doom and Latveria. She was sure that there were many in the organization who still held a deep hatred for Doom and a wish to finish their beloved former Directors ambitions to put an end to Doom. Of the top of her head without really thinking about it she could picture at least several dozen. But would they really risk her wrath? Black Widow maybe, Dum Dum Dugan perhaps, Abigail Brand Director of SWORD, unlikely but possible. But other than these few how many would dare cross her? And was it truly possible for them to pull something like this off from within SHEILD without her knowing about it? He liked to think the answer was no.

All of this and so much more she thought in the course of seconds. Images, people, places and things, conversations, written reports, data transmissions, anything that could be relevant to this situation. So much data to process yet her mind did it with no problems it would be impressive to many, in fact it had already impressed individuals like Charles Xavier, Sebastian Shaw, Nick Fury and Tony Stark, it was something that made her a perfect leader in her eyes and a leader was what was needed right now. Stark was seemingly taking care of the situation outside, the one inside needed guidance before it erupted into chaos. “You, You, You and You…” She suddenly called out pointing to several FBI and CIA agents as well as the usual guards of the building. “I am Sage, Director of SHEILD I am taking command of this situation as of now. I want several of you to gather your available teams. The guards need to cordon off the building, make sure everyone stays inside and is safe and no one leaves. FBI Agents I want you to make sure no one comes in at all without my say so do you understand!?” She barked the order and watched several grimace and nod. “CIA Agents, I want you to get me all the information for today, docket lists, transcripts, video surveillance… everything and I also need you to protect all the delegates. I want two men to every foreign dignitary, senator etc.” The CIA agents were a little less emotional in their response but Sage could still sense their apparent disdain for the Director of SHEILD, it was no secret that these organizations did not trust one another but they trusted SHEILD even less. For now this would have to do until Stark gave the ok from outside that everything was clear… or something worse happened.

[Warren Worthington]

((OOC: Simply posting him here, so that it becomes part of his knowledge base and history))

As a world class businessman and member of the super human community, Warren Worthington was accustomed to meetings like this. As a mutant and member of Charles Xavier's infamous X-Men, he was also used to discrimination. People like Osborn never seemed to account for the fact that he and no one like him had asked for this. No one asked to be viewed as a freak or ostracized because of an inherent difference they had absolutely no control over whatsoever. It wasn't like he had said, as a hormonally challenged teenager no less, that he wanted to grow huge feathered wings out of his back.

Of course his perspective was different now, even if dealing with such an obvious physical mutation wasn't easy. But then, flight had changed things. It turned out that he was made to fly. He loved it. He literally loved it. And it gave him the chance to escape his daily dealings with men like Norman Osborn. A man who no doubt was more comfortable dealing with a man like Warren's father, Warren the Second.

Worthington, so smartly dressed in an expertly tailored suit, simply sat back and watched and listened to the proceedings. He didn't feel the need to interject and largely he didn't feel it was his place. He wasn't here to represent the X-Men, Charles Xavier, his friend Scott or even mutant kind. There were men better able to handle themselves in such an arena, namely men like Magneto. While he didn't necessarily agree with everything being said, he could at least understand where he was coming from.

He knew that he should not have been surprised when Osborn unveiled the newest generation of the Sentinel. He was worldly enough in his experience to recognize that given the current climate that something like this was bound to happen. However, that didn't make it any easier to accept. The entire idea made him angry. Sentinels were programmable, largely utilized at the whims and hidden agendas of their owners. He didn't like the idea of anyone being able to control a weapon of that nature. He started to get up and leave, but thought better of it. Listening in, he might be able to learn more about the seemingly ever-changing political landscape. He had to wonder how people like Captain America and Iron Man were going to handle being hunted. Mutants had been dealing with this kind of thing for a long time now. Life was going to get interesting.