Grace trudged through the jungle the heat had already caused her to strip off her leather jacket and store it deeply within her backpack. Now she wore loose fitting pants and a black tank top. She was feeling highly paranoid and she didn't know why. It was something she had learned to be aware when things were crazy. She felt much more comfortable with her machete at the ready on her hip. A must have in a jungle, even though this jungle seemed to have almost no animals.

She had been searching for something a place to belong maybe, but she didn't know just wondered looking for it. Then she heard the snap, almost instantly she reacted and was gone appearing 10 yards away in a defensive position. More snaps could be heard as a metal saw ripped out of the tree right for her middle. Leaping into the air she back flipped landing neatly on the metal strip that held the circular blade. Her machete instantly appeared in her hand as she stabbed into the wires causing it to stop.

"This is a dangerous place, time for me to get the hell out of her as fast as possible." Grace muttered as she took a deep breath and cleared her mind this was going to take a lot of energy. Opening her eyes she vanished landing 40 yards away. Instantly after she appeared she was gone again barely registering the snap of another trap. She did this four more times before stopping no trap being set but she didn't move afraid of what might happen. Needing to rest she sighed and teleported herself up into the trees and landed on a nice large branch and sat down pulling out a bottle of water.

This was... not right. Whiplash was the one who had assigned to watch the cameras that day... so Whiplash was the one who saw the girl wandering through the jungle... and Whiplash was the one to notice as she teleported to avoid the traps, before finally landing for a rest in the branches of a tree. A small spark of anger lit in her stomach... and a moment later she had called over one of the other agents to continue watching the moniters, and had used the transporter to leave the base and appear in the jungle. A quick look around, and she was on her way to the last place she'd seen the woman on the screen.

After a couple years of manuevering through this jungle, she was able to do so silently. She knew almost by heart where most the traps were, and those she didn't she knew how to see. A few minutes later, she could see her... still perched up in the branches, drinking water... as if this were a tourist hike. Fat chance. She thought to herself sourly, making her way closer to the tree before finally speaking. "Bit far from the city, don't you think?" Okay, so Whiplash was a bit far from the city too... but she had every reason and right to be. She lived here. This woman didn't. And like any person guarding a secret... she was getting territorial.

A few hours had passed and almost all of her energy was recovered from the little escaping from traps, obviously something was in this jungle. She recapped her water and placed it back in her bag when she heard another female speak to what seemed like her. Standing she looked down putting her hand gently against the tree the other on the machetes handle. "I am, but that doesn't mean anything." Alice hissed she didn't like smart asses at all, and this new woman was threatening her.

Alice took a split second to make sure she still had both knifes strapped to her leg and the few thinner throwing knifes strapped to he hip that blended into the clothes. Alice's mind was already racing to the fight that was about to happen she knew the types that loved to fight and yearned to do so. She was one of those types, smugness radiated from this mysterious woman and Alice wanted to see how good she really was.

Whiplash didn't have to see the weapons to know that the woman was checking to make sure they were all accessible to her. It was in the subtle shifts of her body, the fixed expression in her eyes... she was expecting a fight. Sighing inwardly, a muscle twitched in her jaw. Of course, she'd fight if necessary... it was her duty to protect the Superior X from detection. It concerned her though... this woman's immediate aggression made her wonder if she already knew what was here. If she knew that Whiplash was not just a woman on a stroll through the jungle.

"Not often I find other people brave enough to come through here. Just felt like a walk?" She asked curiously, pretending that she hadn't noticed the woman's rising aggression. She wanted to find out why she was here... what she knew... But if all this stranger wanted to do was fight, then Whiplash would make damn sure she kicked her ass as far away from the base as possible. She remained where she was, posture relaxed, hands loose at her sides. While she didn't mind fighting now... and enjoyed it usually... she wasn't going to start one. Not this time. Not unless she had to.

Alice just smiled, this woman was good, the way she watched Alice's moves meant that she wasn't some idiot trying to be brave. "Yeah, just felt like a walk, who knows what one can find out her." She replied, but almost before the last word left her mouth she was gone. At the same moment she was standing about 5 yards away from Whiplash. Her machete loosely held in her hand.

"Why is someone like you in the jungle is the real question, coming out of the blue and talking to me." Alice was not foolish she knew something was her, it was what led her to this place. The traps were another dead give away people don't randomly trap a place unless there is something in it that needs to be protected or kept hidden. Alice wanted the woman to make the first move, if it didn't happen she would just continue deeper into the jungle.

Just like that, the woman had disappeared, and Whiplash spun around so that she was facing her once more. Of course she'd known she was a teleporter... she'd watched her avoid the traps that way. Now there was a machete in her hand... and Whiplash had to struggle not to roll her eyes. Did she honestly think that would save her? Whiplash remained where she was, giving her shoulders a casual shrug as she slipped her hands into her pockets. There was nothing about her posture or demeanor that could be considered aggressive... or even really defensive for that matter. It was just perfectly clear that she didn't see anything threatening about the woman in front of her.

"I'm looking for someone, thought you might know where I can find her. Around your height, brown hair, hazel gray eyes... Seen her?" Well, it was true. Whiplash probably would have spent her entire day inside, if she didn't have to come out here to go looking for the woman that was standing in front of her. She took a light step forward and off to the side... not really in any direction in particular, she just knew better than to stand still for too long. This woman was beginning to irritate her... and it was obvious there was more to her being here than she was letting on. But Whiplash also knew that if she called her out on it, or attacked directly, then she'd only arouse suspicion and the woman would keep coming back until she found what Whiplash was guarding. So it seemed the best way to prevent that would be to just kill her. And she would, if she needed to. But for the meantime, she just wanted to find out as much as the woman knew... to see if it really was necessary.

Alice just smiled, the girl was trying to be funny as well. Didn't seem like she wanted a fight, so she wasn't going to give her one. It had taken a while for Alice to master her anger but she was no pretty good at calming down. She looked over her shoulder and sheathed the machete. "What I am doing here, really isn't any of your buisness unless you have a reason of your own that it should, in which case you could just spill your guts."

It wasn't long after stating that, that Alice telported backwards about 40 yards away. "If not, then good day." She said turning to walk away, the way Whiplash had come from.

Whiplash let her go in silence, a sly smile written across her features as she watched her receding back. She was searching for something... that much was obvious. Though if she thought Whiplash would have been stupid enough to make a beeline straight from the transport point, she was dead wrong. Hell, even if she did find the transport point... it wouldn't get her anywhere. There was no way to tell one tree from the next... the only reason Whiplash was ever able to find it herself was pure photographic memory. Even so, she often had to try a few times before finding the right one.

However, even with all the precautions the builders of the base had taken, Whiplash still needed answers. So she allowed the other woman to go about her way... then began to follow in perfect silence. She kept her distance, of course... crouched low and always slightly behind the trees, so even if this woman did glance around behind her, she wouldn't be seen. Whiplash had no idea how long she'd follow her... or how long she would need to. But there was a reason she had climbed the respect ladder so quickly. Covert was her specialty.

Alice just smiled, it was what she had hoped for, knowing that if the woman let her go she would follow. Of course there was no way that she could tell where she was, she knew the type. Doing some math in her head, having to know a great deal to mess with computers at times, she figured out that if the woman was following her she would be around 75 yards back. Skipping a trap, but making a fake move to tie her shoes she tied a string onto the trap from her bag, she made a mental note and kept a running memory of it.

About 75 yards away Alice stopped and looked over her shoulder a smirk on her face. She pulled the rope trigger to the explosive trap that was around the area Whiplash was in theory. Alice was usually pretty good at this, even if it wasn't enough to harm the woman, it would be close enough to cause her to blow her cover. Alice was waiting for what would happen next. Quick teleports drained her but she would do it to catch this woman by suprise

She was smart... almost too smart. Whiplash couldn't help but wonder if this woman was from SHIELD... come to uncover the secrets of Superior X once and for all. Naturally... Whiplash couldn't let that happen. It was relieving though... to see that she actually expected her to not know where the traps were set. She'd been planning on just stepping around it, when she saw the string that was attatched to the spring mechanism. Smirking lightly to herself, she withdrew a few steps, and moved off to the side deeper behind the cover of trees.

The woman was waiting... as was she. Several moments passed... nothing but an eerie silence filled the jungle. It seemed even the creatures were watching in apprehension, waiting to see what would happen. Crouching low to the ground, her fingers wrapped around a small stone... and she tossed it lightly towards the trap. With deadly precision, it struck the spring, and the trap leapt into light, blades swinging from one tree to embed in another. Had a person actually been standing there, they would have been nothing but pieces now.

Without another sound, Whiplash remained right where she was, waiting to see if the stranger would come to investigate what had sprung the trap.

Alice smiled as she quickly double teleported appearing several yards away from the trap just standing there. The woman she was being followed by was smart, but Alice even though she wanted to beat the shit out of this woman, wanted answers. "Come on out jungle woman." Alice said as she leaned up against the nearest tree, no weapon drawn.

This woman might hold the information Alice needed, it would be best to try and deal with her logically instead of just trying to beat her into submission. Seeing as no weapons were evident from the initial meeting, at least nothing bigger then a knife, she assumed this woman was a mutant. Which made this jungle the place she was looking for. It was hard to find information, especially of this group but she had found small hints here and there to get a general idea of where it was. Sadly no matter how much Alice tried she couldn't find it on any computer. Either it didn't exist or was well guarded.

Whiplash smirked, as she remained right where she was for several long moments after the other woman teleported over. "You know..." she began, as she slowly stood from her crouched position and stepped around the tree so she could see her. "Keep 'porting around like that, and people might start thinking you're a mutant." She remained where she was, albeit visible, her gaze meeting that of the other woman with another small smirk.

Did she seriously think she would win here? All she had to drive her was curiosity. For Whiplash... there was so much more at stake. So much more that she would die to protect. And if she killed her... she would never get the answers she sought. So long as Whiplash was alive, she would never get the answers she sought. It was a lose-lose situation for this woman, didn't she see that? There were just some secrets that best not be shared.

Alice just smiled gently at Whiplash it wasn't like her to be nice but right now it was wise to be nice. "Who says I am trying to hide the fact, its not hard to guess your one as well." Alice said with a smirk she figured it was true. The way she held herself meant she had power, and not seeing any visible weapons but possibly knifes meant she had something else that she wasn't telling.

"So I want in." Alice stated, she didn't know if this was a person in Superior X but she was just hoping that the bluff would work. It would be much easier this way then to have to beat the information out of her. Since whiplash was the only one that came out Alice figured she was powerful and would most likely be hard or nearly impossible to beat.

The other woman guessed she was a mutant, and Ravenna knew there was no point in denying it. In all honesty... had she ever denied it? No, because she was arrogant like that. If someone was going to attack her for being a mutant, they were going to pay quite painfully for it. That was all there was to it. So she merely gave a shrug, and a wry careless smile. "Guilty as charged." Now, if this woman was bold enough to demand to know what she could do... then Whiplash would just have to show her. The painful way.

Her next statement, however, furrowed her brows in confusion. She paused for a moment, trying to work the idea through in her mind. "You want in being a mutant? Looks like you kinda already got that covered..." Of course, there was the possibility that she had somehow found out that this was where the Superior X was headquartered... but did she seriously expect that she could just teleport onto their doorstep, say she wanted in, and they would just welcome her with open arms? No. See... the way it really was gonna go... Whiplash would just kill her in order to keep her from spilling their secret. If she was nosy enough to find them out, she was too dangerous to keep alive.

Alice stood there and finally made up her mind. "So if you don't know anything I want to know I have no need for you." She had stood back off the tree and started to walk away from the woman making sure to be aware of everything. Either she would attack or just walk on away either one would work. The day was getting colder as the night was starting to set in.

Deep inside Alice was hurting, she had thought this was the place she needed to go, it felt right. now she would have to continue searching never really finding a place to go. She was to broken for the X-men didn't hate humans enough to joint he brotherhood. Who knew what she would do now.

Mr. James was beginning to grow tired of watching the game of cat and mouse on the monitors. A few explosions here and there, some stalking... all starting to become somewhat of a bore. He could tell by the fact that the visitor was still alive that Whiplash hadn't yet decided to kill her like she would have done any other day. She must have been thinking... calculating... figuring out what to do with the visitor and weighing options. In essence, she was confirming Mr. James' reasons for bringing her aboard the SX team.

Still though, the day would hold more interesting things for all of them, so too much time couldn't be spent playing around in the jungle. The visitor was allowed to find the place and allowed to find out as much information as she knows now, so it was time for the real test.

"Whiplash..." his voice whispered mentally to her. She would know that she only has to think the words to reply. "As amusing as this encounter is, I think you should show her the severity of the situation she is in. I'd like to see how well she bleeds."

Once more, the woman turned to leave, and Whiplash remained where she was, her gaze never leaving her. Her initial intention was to wait, allow her to get a little farther away, before once more following her... "escorting" her to the edge of the jungle, just to ensure she didn't double back around and continue poking her nose where it didn't belong. But those thoughts were soon changed as Tempero's voice rang through her mind. Whiplash hadn't known the man had been watching... if she had she most likely would have been far more nervous. She was never comfortable knowing she was being supervised... but that was one bit of self-consciousness she would never confess to anyone. But it didn't matter. She now had her orders.

A sly, devilish smirk curled her lips as she turned to face the woman's retreating back. "Understood." She replied mentally to Tempero, slipping a small pin from it's hiding place on the inside of her wristband. Within a moment, she had transformed the delicate piece of metal into a thin line of rippling electrical currents. A flick of the fingers sent the electricity gliding through the air, with just the right angle and speed to slip past the side of the woman's neck... hopefully leaving a small electrical burn in its wake, or at the very least singe a few hairs in passing. The miniscule size made it near soundless, and even more difficult to see as it landed on the ground, flickering and crackling for just a moment before the electrical charge faded away. Whiplash hadn't put that much energy into it whatsoever... just enough to complete the transformation and hopefully demand the woman's attention once more.

Alice was walking away when she heard her hair singe and a small shock was sent down her cheek. Her face grew red as she turned around yelling, "O no you did not." In an instant she was gone appearing right in front of the woman but her waist shoulder height on the woman. As soon as she was out of the teleport her foot was already moving for the womans face. If the kick made contact she would land and quickly backstep pulling out her machete.

Alice was very angry now, she was actually truthfully going to leave, but not after that woman messed with her hair. It was one thing to attack her but another completely to mess with her hair. Alice just hoped this wouldn't be the end of her...

So it didn't miss... good. The other woman spun around, yelling something that made Ravenna wonder if she'd grown up in a ghetto somewhere. An amused smirk was in place on her lips, and she said nothing in reply. The time for talk was over. It seemed the stranger had the same thoughts, as a moment later she reappeared directly infront of Whiplash, her foot swinging out in a solid kick to her face. Unable to block in time, her head was shoved to the side under the force of the impact, followed by her shoulders as her body was twisted slightly. Sound told her that the woman then landed, backing a step and pulling out her machete once more. For a moment, Whiplash remained motionless, the gold in her eyes shining just a little bit brighter as the electric cells in her body began to move faster through her circulation. She could already feel a bruise forming across her cheekbone where the kick had landed... And to be perfectly honest, Raven was getting sick of sporting injuries.

What happened next was fast... as Whiplash straightened to face the other woman, a sharp jerk freeing her wristband. An instant later, the small strip of black leather had been transformed into a much longer bull whip of pure electricity. She held it off to her side, prepared to put it to good use at a moment's notice. "Maybe you can clear something up for me." She stated as she took a small step forward. "Why do people always think they can go wherever they want to, ask whatever questions they want to, and expect to be given the answers of the universe just because they want to know?" If this woman went through the trouble of even finding out that the Superior X existed... let alone where they made their base... then she of all people should know just how much they liked their privacy. Whiplash seriously didn't know what gave her the impression she'd be able to just waltz right in and be told everything she wanted to know... But that misconception would stop here.

Alice just smirked as she had landed the kick, it was time to fight, but this woman deep down scared the shit out of her. Alices face failed her the moment the whip came out her eyes went big for a split second before going back to normal. Now Alice was really scared, but she wouldn't back down it wasn't her style. She would give everything she had in this fight, she would not run, she didn't know it but she felt that she was close to what she seeked and she would not let it slip from her hands.

"Well, to answer you question, cause I really can." Alice was quickly trying to figure out exactly what she could do in this situation, this woman had the upper hand and it would take everything to just survive. With her free hand she pulled out a knife and threw it towards her just to test her. She didn't make another move, she was going to wait for the other woman to act and then react to it.

New recruits were always so fun. Tempering them mentally and physically until they fit perfectly the profile of an "SXer", as Windhawk had recently been calling his comrades. A healthy rivalry would be just what these two ladies need; something to drive each of them to reach their assumed potential and surpass it without even noticing it themselves. They'd fight each other for now, Mr. James himself might even break up the fight personally, he'd pretend to be angry with them both for one reason or another, and then he'd eventually apologize to them both on seperate occasions, explaining that the grand scheme of things is only to draw them closer, make them stronger, and prove to all that they deserve the high status within the organization that they are destined to accquire over time. "Ah, the mind games..." he signed contently as he watched the moniters.

((ooc: You two can go on and fight; I'll just refrain from posting with Tempero until the situation calls for it again. Have fun!))

The woman spoke, but didn't really answer her question. Whiplash hadn't really expected her to. A knife was thrown towards her, but Whiplash was ready for it this time, and twisted her body to narrowly avoid it. She straightened as it passed, and in the same moment her arm skillfully swung forward, the whip lashing out to strike across the woman's abdomen. If it hit, the sheer electricity would undoubtedly leave a horizontal burn from one side to the other, which would most likely scar quite severely. It was perhaps what Whiplash took the most pleasure in when it came to fighting. When she killed, she left her mark, so others would know what she was capable of. When she let them live... they would have a constant reminder of what she could have done, and know not to ever cross her again.

Alice was still standing perfectly still waiting for Whiplash's next move. That whip looked menacing and from the looks of it would sear through her clothes and skin with ease. Being hit by this would almost certainly put a end to this battle. Electricity was one of the worst things to be hit by.

Alice was ready for this, as soon as her hand moved Alice was gone. She appeared 10 yards to the left side and 10 yards up of Whiplash another two daggers being thrown. As she fell towards the ground she launched another dagger at her. Before Alice even seen if the knifes hit she was gone again. This time she was 5 yards behind Whiplash her machete ready at hand. Her goal wasd to have the knifes cause her to become off balance and to cut her with the machete.

The woman teleported, as Whiplash had been expecting her to. Honestly, if she'd let herself get wounded by the first strike, she wouldn't have been worth the effort to kill. Right as she materialized, two knives were sent hurtling towards her, shortly followed by a third as the woman reached the ground. Rather than even attempting to dodge them all, and certainly not willing to shed blood over this pathetic brat, Whiplash disappeared. Okay, so not entirely vanished disappeared... should one look close enough, they'd see a shimmering ball of nothing but electricity hovering a few feet off the ground. The knives flew straight through it, sparking and crackling as they passed through the currents to lay on the ground on the opposite side. Normally, Whiplash would take that moment to transform back into her normal state in order to continue the attack... but she could see the machete in the woman's hand, prepared to strike. She'd have to wait a moment, see if the woman would move into a position that wouldn't be quite so dangerous for Whiplash in the moment that she reformed... Hell, she could stay like this for an hour if she needed to.

Alice's eyes went wide for a moment as none of the daggers hit her. She had just used up roughly half her energy just to do that, and it failed. She didn't know what had happened, it took her a minute to realize that she had turned into what looked like pure lightning. "Well so you do have some tricks up those sleeves of yours. Of course it isn't the bravest of tricks but eh." She muttered as she just walked around the floating ball of energy.

Throwing two dagger behind her into the tree she vanished reappearing, sitting on them. "I will just wait." Alice ported her canteen into her hand to take a swig. She was ready to wait out this little game. She hadn't started to fight in order for her to turn into orb of lightning, common sense told Alice not to touch it. As she was probably made out of the same stuff that singed her hair.

The woman teleported up into into a tree, getting her canteen and taking another drink. Whiplash took that moment to reform, spinning around as she grabbed a switchblade from it's hiding place at the flat of her hip, instantly transforming it into electricity as she tossed it skillfully towards the woman. That's right, it was a trick. And a nasty one at that too. But it was her own fault for thinking she could take a break while her opponent was still right in front of her. Her whip still in hand, she lashed out with it as well, not really expecting it to make contact if the woman dodged the blade, but just in case her reflexes weren't fast enough... Well, Tempero did tell her to show the woman the severity of the situation she'd gotten herself into...