Heroes.
Villains.
It was a title that had yet to gain any ground in the current age of history. A title no hero or villain branded themselves as, titles that the media and public had yet to give them. But Scott still found the thought of being such a thing strange to imagine. He had never seen himself as a hero, nor as a villain like the media branded Mutants as.
Nor had Cyclops.
The memories and instincts that Cyclops had given him, were slowly becoming his own. There were times when he thought he had been reborn once more, that he was Cyclops given a second chance in a new life. Most of the time he was acutely aware that he and Cyclops were different people, alternate versions of one another but different in defining ways. However, there were moments when it was difficult to tell when Cyclops' memories and experiences ended and he began.
That worried Scott because he had seen the good and the bad that Cyclops had done. He was a man that Scott admired above all else, when the Mutant race was on the verge of extinction, it was Cyclops who led them to victory. It was his leadership during the hard times that followed that enabled the Mutant race to continue existing. He made wild cards and all sorts of colourful characters come together when they would have at any other point, being opposed or unable to get along with one another.
Cyclops was the man that Scott admired and aspired to be like more than anyone else.
But Scott was also acutely aware of all his shortcomings.
He had doubted himself more than any other leader in the world, all stemming from his failed relationships and inability to control his powers. Those doubts led to hesitation and costly mistakes that impacted the world and he had felt the weight of them all. He was broken down by his own errors and left to find himself on many occasions.
He abandoned his wife and child.
Allowed personal feelings to get in the way of what was right on many occasions.
He had not been perfect, Cyclops had been flawed and was in a position where those flaws were constantly being exposed. One who felt overwhelmed and found himself being swept up in his own plans and schemes without a way to stop going down a path that put him and those around him at risk.
Cyclops was a man to admire, but a man with many flaws.
Scott wanted to be just like him, but nothing like him at the same time.
He wanted to be better than him in every way.
But he was scared that with their memories becoming meshed together as they were, the feelings that came with it, all threatened to consume him till there was no Scott Summers left. There would only be Cyclops, the flawed but determined Mutant that stood alone in the world.
That was not supposed to happen.
"I told you," Warren spoke up from his side. "Eleven o'clock should have been our meet time. It's nearly that now and they've yet to arrive. Two hours of waiting wasted."
Scott like he always did though, dismissed those fears, for now, instead focusing on the current situation at hand. "And if we had done as you said and they had met at nine or ten, we would have missed them. What then?"
"Yeah, but they didn't, did they?"
Scott frowned. "Hindsight is a wonderful thing." He replied. "But often, it is better to be safe than sorry."
"Whatever." Warren dismissed, then straightened up. "We've got movement."
Scott said nothing, instead pulling out the binoculars he had prepared for this and looking down from his position on top of a warehouse. There, he looked across the dock to another warehouse that's doors were slowly opening for the SUVs to pull into.
"I count three SUVs," Warren said.
"Bulletproof window, but more than likely four to five men in each, no doubt fully armed with semiautomatic and shotguns at most. But definitely carrying handguns." Scott listed off. "The warehouse considering its size and this being a meeting while probably have a similar number, possibly a few more patrolling the outside. All with similar armaments."
Warren looked at him questioningly. "What makes you say that?"
"Criminals won't conduct meetings like this without the playing ground being relatively equal. The big-time dealers won't show up in huge force, they'll be the ones in the SUVs. They don't need to because the major player won't be here and no one wants to step on the toes of the big guy." Scott explained. "As for the Grady Gang, their small time, they'll turn up in larger forces and probably choose the location, but anything that goes wrong will be on them. So, that's why they'll have a similar number inside as to what the other party brought, but have a few more patrolling outside acting as protection."
"That makes sense." Warren agreed, trying not to show how impressed he was by the quick analysis of the situation. He was a little ashamed to admit that he had not even considered much of what Scott had brought up. Even more so when he realised how simple and obvious such things were. "So, I'm thinking we go in hard and fast. I've got a few tools that can cause chaos amongst large groups, should give us the advantage."
Scott shook his head. "Our first job should be to take out the patrols as quickly and as quietly as possible." He paused for a moment, thinking upon things a little more. "If we can lure them into a single area, there to the left."
Warren looked to where Scott was pointing, a small alleyway, not massively far from the warehouse, but just far enough. It was outside of the patrol area, and therefore secluded and quiet.
"Then, after taking them out we should go with a two-pronged approach." Scott continued. "I'll come from the rear, blast a hole through the back wall and pressure them out through the front. That's where you'll come in. They'll more than likely try and fight back, and some will probably escape, but my powers should make them decide to cut their losses rather than push their luck."
"Which is where Mist and I come in, right?" Warren asked with a frown, once again, he was finding himself showed up by someone else. He had always excelled at everything he tried, a prodigy they had called him. But now, there was someone the same age as him coming up with a plan that Warren hadn't even considered.
Scott nodded his head. "Yes, it's where you will come in. As I said, they'll try and fight back, test the waters to see if they can win, but they'll be prepared to retreat if need be. You said you have tools that can be used to cause a little chaos, right?"
"Yeah."
"Like what?"
"Some gas pellets, a few flashbangs and a smoke gun." They were Worthington Industry products that he had stolen on one of his visits to the warehouse with his father. Top-quality gear that was being issued to various police forces across America and most recently, they had started distribution in Europe.
"Swoop low and use the flashbangs first, followed then by the gas pellets and smoke gun. It'll funnel most out of the smoke away from their cars, I'll be able to take them out from a distance easily then." Scott said.
"And Mist? What's she doing through all this."
"Watching from a distance," Amelia stated, appearing on the rooftop beside them as she materialised into being. "I'll make sure no one else approaches as Cyclops said, but this is your fight."
"You alright with that?" Scott asked, Warren nodding his head after a few moments.
"What hell, let's get this over with." He muttered, flapping his wings and taking to the sky leaving Scott and Amelia there.
"That seems to have gone well." She snarked, Scott frowning.
He pushed himself to his feet, making his way towards the ladder at the side of the warehouse. "He didn't like being showed up." Not that Scott had expected anything different from him. "But his plan was reckless and would have put him and me in unnecessary danger. I simply suggested a better plan that avoided that risk."
-X- Line Break -X-
Though his plan had eliminated that uncessary risk, Scott was always infinitely aware of unforeseen variables. The reason Cyclops and the X-Men had struggled in the early years had been because of his inability to react and adapt on the fly to said unforeseen variables. He had been rigid and by the books, going in with a singular plan that rarely succeeded when encountering something that was not meant to be there.
It had only been through years of practise, failures and victories, of trying again and again that Cyclops learned how to become a better leader. He had always been rigid and meticulous in his preparations, rarely one to be flexible in his leadership. But what he was good at was preparing for every possible scenario.
He created plans within plans, preparing for unknowns even if there were known. Cyclops made sure that no matter what happened, he had a plan to deal with it effectively and quickly. That was what made Cyclops such an effective leader, one that had been able to outsmart the Avengers on numerous occasions with layered plans that caught them all off-guard.
Scott had taken that approach for himself.
He had known when entering Queens that it was the home of the hero, Spider-Man, one who was slowly making a name for himself at this time. However, many of the villains Spider-Man would encounter throughout his career had yet to make an appearance. That did not mean that Scott would get complacent though.
No, in fact, he was prepared and ready.
It was why, as he watched the tall, large muscular set man that caught Warren midair by the leg. Then, with impressive strength, the albino man swung Warren around and slammed him back first into the ground.
The asphalt cracked under the force of the impact, Warren gasping out in pain as the breath burst from his lungs. Personally, Scott could find no image of the man in Cyclops' memories, those that had been shown to him at the very least. But he did recognise the description of the man, tall, large and pale skin.
Tombstone.
A minor threat that Cyclops had only read up on as a potential variable that could have a minor impact on any engagement that took place in Queens. He had never been considered a major threat and it was only due to Cyclops' thorough nature of researching each and every single person who could impact the course of the fight in a specific area that Tombstone had ever come onto his radar.
But he was hardly a threat to Cyclops and he was not a threat to him either.
Even though Warren was down for the count, most of the criminal's Tombstone and the Grady Gang had brought with them were also down. Scott, thanks to the aid of Warren had made quick work of them with accurate and powerful Optic Blasts.
Them getting up again any time soon would be a miracle.
Tombstone was no different, he turned with a hammer in his hand, leaving Warren down on the ground at his feet. A smart decision really, he was winded and unlikely to make a move for the moment, while he was still moving. Tombstone, whether simply by chance or by design, had decided to take out Scott who was the bigger threat.
But the moment he took a step towards Scott, he walked straight into an Optic Blast.
Within the span of no more than second or two from the moment Warren was slammed into the ground to the moment Tombstone made a move on Scott, he was struck. The Optic Blast slammed into his gut and violently ripped Tombstone off his feet and blasting him out into the water behind him.
Simple, quick and efficient.