Light A Way

59

With a glare, Elsie singlehandedly managed to persuade someone to not sit next to her. She knew it was likely someone would, but with the looks which she was receiving off of the man, she didn't want him anywhere near her. "Can I swap seats with you?"

"Huh?" Charles look to her confused. He was still too busy looking about, only now he was seated and doing so. Only because everyone else had slowly taken to sitting too. Elsie looked with pleading eyes, sensing her unease he didn't question it anymore. With a nod he stood and shifted out of the way as she practically clambered into the seat he once occupied. Now being seated between himself and Hank she seemed to relax quite visibly. "Problems?"

"I just...it's only..." Elsie stumbled over her words while twiddling her thumbs. Slowly she clasped her hands together and entwined her fingers. Looking around and then up at him, she sighed. "I just never really prepared myself to be sitting in such close proximity to a stranger. It...it doesn't, didn't, make me to very comfortable."

Charles nodded slowly and put a hand over hers. She relinquished the grip she had on herself and opted to hold onto him tightly instead. "I should've suggested you sitting between us." He mused while glancing from her to the stage, there was suddenly movement up the front which caught his attention. He silently cursed himself for forgetting about her displeasure to having her personal space invaded by people she did not trust, let alone know before watching as the rest of the crowd gathered slowly silenced. Feeling the grip on his hand increase with the sudden movement on the stage, he patted the back of her hand. "It will be okay."

"You can't guarantee that." She whispered while looking at him from the corner of her eyes. Biting on her lip she looked around. As if Raven was just going to pop up and be in sight. She had better luck trying to get a pig to fly than for that to happen. Afraid when it came to locating her, the only real hope they had was Charles. He sat tuning out of the noise and ruckus around him and concentrated on trying to find his sister. But the frown which was slowly appearing on his face, Elsie could only presume the search wasn't going well. She would say a failure, but she had more confidence in him and his skills, than in this failing.

"My fellow Americans, today we face the greatest threat in our history: Mutants." The low smug yet confident voice of Richard Nixon instantly caused everyone to pay attention to him. The four of them stared at the dark haired man who had taken his place behind the podium. His hands clasped the sides of the simple wooden structure as calculating eyes roamed across the sea of faces before him. They were all gathered to hear him and his apparent resolution to this so called 'problem'.

"Erik...you got the wrong sodding president." Elsie muttered and slapped a hand to her forehead. Her words got a quick displeased look to be sent her way by Charles. Even if Nixon was the most obnoxious man on the planet, he clearly still wouldn't opt for him to be murdered for it and for his words coming from concern and fear. Hank and Logan simply looked to her and shook their heads, respectively they could understand what she said, but not wishing to be on the end of a glare they stayed silent.

"We have prepared for this threat. In the immortal words of Robert Oppenheimer: 'Behold. The world will never be the same again.'" He said with a flourish of his arm. With his hand he waved at one of the cloaked objects on the stage. With a rather smug look he watched, along with everyone else, as the objects were revealed. There was a collective gasp as the huge robotic forms were unveiled. The stoic lifeless eyes stared out at the crowd gathered while their forms stood motionless.

They were impressive. And they were terrifying. How something managed to succeed in both was a mystery. Being told of the machines was nothing in comparison to actually seeing them. Elsie shifted in her seat as she glanced up at the purple and silver things. Her breathing hitched ever so slightly. She certainly didn't know what the Sentinels were like from Logan's time, but these were enough to make her afraid. How could anyone make something already so deadly, even deadlier? How? Could that actually happen, really? She never questioned what Logan had said, but she just couldn't get her head around these machines boosting in the deadly department. Regardless of her struggling moment, all around them people cheered. They seemed to approve of these robotic creations, abominations, Elsie thought, she had been called one enough times by her parents, but these things in front of them all were true abominations.