Frost Enterprises Truth Bomb

[Black King]

Sebastian Shaw sat with his legs crossed in the backseat of his custom made Cadillac CT6 limosine.  He had traveled by private jet from New York.  Luckily his mutant abilities made it impossible for him to feel any sense of jetlag.  The local Frost Enterprises was a smaller branch than the one in New York City, but it was much more convenient for Emma at that time.  Shaw was prepared to drop a huge truth bomb on Emma Frost.  Sebastian Shaw was allegedly murdered a few years ago at the hands of his own son, Shinobi.  Of course, Sebastian Shaw wasn't one to be outsmarted especially by the likes of Shinobi.  Sebastian Shaw reared his head again and hunted Shinobu down and got the revenge he needed.  In doing so, Sebastian Shaw learned the truth behind the attacks.

His car pulled up to the front door.  The driver hurried to open the door for Shaw.  He stepped out in his distinctive Italian leather shoes, straightening out the wrinkles in his suit as he did so.  As is Shaw's style, the top few buttons of his suit were left open, revealing his manly chest.  He stepped on up and through the large glass doors and into the lobby.  Frost Enterprises was an electronics company.  Shaw had considerable stock in the company himself, but Emma Frost was the majority shareholder and CEO.  He wondered how active she was in the company considering the X-Men's recent troubles.

"I have an appointment with Miss Frost.  Has she arrived yet?"  Sebastian Shaw was polite enough, but there was a stern undertone that would make anyone nervous to give him the disappointing news.  He was gestured to wait, which he did so patiently.

[Emma Frost]

Emma and Claire flew down from San Francisco in one of the X-Men's newly acquired helicopters and landed on the roof of Frost Enterprises. Despite the day-to-day grind of being, at least for the moment, the main leader of the X-Men, Emma managed to keep things with her company running smoothly.

To be honest, it kept her from thinking about the fact Scott was still away on his Iron John quest to find the meaning of life. He needed to get back soon, but she knew in her heart that was not going to happen.

"Sebastian, sorry to keep you waiting," Emma said as she and Claire exited the elevator. Emma was clad in a white leather skirt and form fitting white jacket. Once the White Queen, always the White Queen.

"Sebastian Shaw, this is my daughter Claire. And before you ask,  yes, this is one of those X-Men things you likely love to chuckle about over your cognac from time to time. Alternate realities are indeed very real. Now, perhaps we should go to my office for this chat. Whatever you want to say to me, you can say in front of Claire."

[Firechild]

Claire very much had a similar taste in fashion. She wore a Black leather skirt with boots and a red shirt along with a black patterned collar with a small phoenix bird in the middle. She stayed close to her mother as her orange eyes looked Shaw over sizing him up. She remembered from distant memories what kind of man he was and that put her on edge.

[Black King]

As the elevator opened, Shaw was surprised that Emma was not alone.  The beauty of the other girl coupled with the Phoenix symbol on her shirt was the shocker.  Emma Frost wasted no time explaining that she was  Emma's daughter from another universe.  His eyes marveled over the young lady, and he could not hide it.  Had Emma's daughter invoked the power of the Phoenix?  Sebastian Shaw and Emma Frost were sole to blame for unleashing the Dark Phoenix.  They had nearly perished from the battle.  Emma Frost had been bested by a young Jean Grey- Something Shaw wondered if he would ever see.  Thats why he had made Emma White Queen in the first place- Fearless ambition.

Sebastian Shaw stood respectfully and followed behind the two.  "Thank you for the courtesy of seeing me." he stated as he followed suit into Emma's beautiful office- A place he had been before years prior, although her tastes had changed.

Shaw helped himself to a seat before Emma or Claire had a chance to offer it.  His ease in the place wouldn't no unnoticed.  "Shut the door behind us, dear." He motioned for Claire.  Shaw's demeanor was docile, somewhat uncharacteristic for him.  "I have learned a great deal of Selene's past transgressions against us; These details have eluded us for a long time, Emma."  His tone turned very serious, sucking Emma into the dramatics.  

[Emma Frost]

"Selene," Emma sighed as she looked from Sebastian to Claire as the young woman shut the door behind them. "We are both versed in her most recent transgressions," she said as she nodded toward her daughter.  "She trashed a wedding. An X-Men-related wedding. Or should I say more correctly, some of the mystics revolving around the X-Men had a very large wedding, and Selene and her coven used the event to exact revenge on various parties involved in the festivities. The only good thing that happened was that her power play likely truncated an attack by William Stryker's squad of bigoted maniacs. They were much easier to kill in zombie form than they usually are."

Emma walked to the credenza behind her desk and opened it to reveal bar items inside. "Sebastian, before you enlighten us with your information, do you care for any libations? And yes, I am aware there is likely a price for the information above the bubbly you might consume. Claire, would you like anything? This is much better than Deadpool and Wolverine's liquor closet back home."

 

[Black King]

Sebastian Shaw smirked at the way Emma Frost spoke. Eloquently, but with an icy cold stone exterior. It was part of what had attracted Sebastian Shaw to her so many years prior. "A fine Scotch on the rocks." he answered casually. Shaw shifted his legs, crossing them as he sat there. "You want her dead." It was more of an assertion than a question. "The X-Men will not allow you to kill her, morals and all." He mocked.

There was a pause.

"I remember how excited you were," he said smiling, "when you founded the Massachusetts Academy. You created a Fortune 100 company to spite your father, but it was never your passion..." Emma Frost took to the children at the Academy. Teaching was something she had once felt she was born for- Her father would never allow a Frost child to become some second rate teacher. The somber tone covered Shaw's face and he looked down at the floor as he continued, "And then Fitzroy happened... We were targeted. You and your students were targeted by Trevor Fitzroy. I was targeted by Shinobi. Magnus was targeted by Fabian Cortez. These were not coincidences, Emma."


"The Black Queen was behind it all. From the first day we met her, she sat on my throne as if it were hers by right." His hand tightened into a fist, his veins pulsing. "She must be punished."

[Firechild]

Claire listened as Shaw spin recent events in his own words. The Blonde haired Phoenix may not have been around Shaw a lot compared to her mother but she didn't need telepathy to know the Black King was always trying to turn the tide to his advantage. {"Mother I know I am preaching to the choir but we can't trust him."}


"Shaw forgive me if I am a little skeptical of your true motives here. If I recall there was a time you tried to use someone else to ascend the Hellfire Club to a higher status and it nearly cost the universe everything....Trust me I know."

[Black King]

Shaw was surprised by Claire's knowledge. It was a pleasant surprise. A stroke of his ego. "Ah, yes..." he exhaled, "And nearly cost the White Queen her life as well." he looked from Claire back to Emma. "I am glad you bring it up. We have underestimated people among us before, and paid for it. The Phoenix was a power that I have never seen before. We felt it first hand... The Black Queen is no Phoenix, but Selene has never showed all her cards. She is no less a mystery to us now than when she first came to us. She has surprised us time and time. She attacked the X-Men. Murdered your students. " Shaw looked sternly to Emma. "Is that not more proof that we need to make sure Selene gets what she deserves?"

Shaw sat forward, off the back of his chair, "You can never do that while she is under the X-Men's custody..."

[Emma Frost]

Emma poured Sebastian his drink and debated smashing the whole bottle of Glenlivit 21 Year Old Archive against the wall every time he mentioned her deceased students. That is exactly the reaction he was looking for, so she would not give it to him. She set the bottle back down slowly and mentally nodded to Claire after her comment. {{I know. I don't trust him. But we need to hear him out so I can let Scott know what the old boy is mulling over this time}}

"I hope this is to your liking, Sebastian," Emma said as she walked over and handed him the glass. "And Claire and I have both had many experiences with the Phoenix. It would likely best Selene in most fights if not all of them. That said, Selene has a way of, how shall I say this? Pulling rabbits out of her hat? No. Not descriptive enough. Bringing hell to Earth? I know. That sounds like Maddie Pryor. They do seem to shop on the same demonic side of the street."

Sebastian Shaw was correct that the X-Men of old would not have allowed Selene to be permanently removed from the playing field, but these were not the X-Men he knew.  Then again, they could have taken out Wanda Maximoff and never did, but that was because she was an Avenger and no one wanted to piss in Tony Stark's Cheerios and have him build a suit that targeted the X-Gene.

"If you want her out of the way so badly, Sebastian, what exactly do you think needs to be done about Selene? Should we roll up a truck, spirit her away and give her to you? Would I be there to watch you pull the plug on her? She is in some sort of coma. That much I gleaned from various parties before we came here," she said as she tapped her temple.   

[Black King]

Sebastian chuckled at Emma, calmly, under his breath.  He could see Emma's heartrate quicken each time he mentioned it.  She had evolved from when they ruled the Hellfire Club together.  She was much more in control of her emotions, but the emotional pull of his argument was still there.  None of them were sure Selene could die anyway.  "Selene has faced the young Phoenix girl on many occasions.  We thought Rachel had killed her.  We thought that other Phoenix girl had killed her... but the Black Queen keeps reappearing somehow.  I am not sure if there is a way to completely vanquish the witch..."

Shaw sipped the drink Emma had prepared for him.  "She was once imprisoned in the catacombs; That didn't work.  She has been hit by the Phoenix in what was thought to be enough to kill the likes of you and I.  She returned stronger than ever...  "  Sebastian looked into his drink, avoiding eye contact, "When I got my revenge on Shinobi, I found something...  Selene was trapped in some chamber using future technology from Fitzroy.  It was literally ripping her apart, molecule by molecule.  I have never seen someone in such pain before, nor did I know the Black Queen was capable of feeling such pain.  Screams of agony, unrelenting...  Eventually, The Black Queen was able to break free by using her telepathy.  a Foolish mistake for Fitzroy to make."

He looked back up, "Unfortunately, the machine self destructed once Selene escaped, but I have located it.  Frost Enterprises may be able to replicate the technology.  No other company on the world could."  Shaw smirked.  It was a stroke of Emma's Ego.  "We put it in a remote location, far from anyone, put psionic dampers in place.  It's the only fate she deserves- An eternity in pain."

[Emma Frost]

"This is starting to sound like that machine Tony Stark and Reed Richards stumbled on during that damnable Civil War..." Emma started to say and then realized she would need to recount a lot of history both Claire and Sebastian did not know. "They wanted to imprison the mystics. Some lunatic sold them a machine to pull the souls out of our magical counterparts. Needless to say, that did not go over well. Nor would this idea once the X-Men found out about it." 

Emma drummed her fingers on her desk as she stood looking at Sebastian. "Claire has not been here long enough to know all the ins and outs of how the X-Men work, but I think we all have a fair idea of how, despite the need to be rid of a threat like Selene, they might not think locking her in a room that rips her apart in such a manner would be a sporting idea. And no, I can't just unilaterally make this decision, as much as it might be the most prudent thing to do."

As Emma thought about the fact that her company was, at least in Sebastian's mind, best suited to recreate this device, she got a knot in the pit of her stomach. Was she really growing a conscience where Selene was concerned, or was she just too jaded after being Sebastian's go-to girl for so long? She didn't trust him as far as she would throw him.

"Say we do go this route, Sebastian?" Emma asked as she look from the Black King to Claire, "How do I know you won't decide to use it on every other person who gets in your way? Your list of enemies does go on for days, doesn't it?"

[Black King]

Shaw could see the cogs were in motion.  Emma was truly considering it.  He knew it would be a difficult decision.  Emma was honor-bound by the X-Men.  Claire's presence in the room could complicate things.  In the old days, Emma Frost would hit her with a psi-bolt and remove the memory of the encounter from her mind.  No loose ends that way; but would certainly get Emma reprimanded if they found out.  Unlikely.  In the old days, Tessa would have advised him against such a chance meeting with the former White Queen.

"Say we do go this route, Sebastian?" Emma asked as she look from the Black King to Claire, "How do I know you won't decide to use it on every other person who gets in your way? Your list of enemies does go on for days, doesn't it?"

He chuckled.  "Amends to be made! I wasn't aware of such a device by Stark- Otherwise, perhaps I would have consulted him instead.  Nonetheless, Stark does not have such a history with the Black Queen as we do.  No one expects you to trust me.  Frost Enterprises would renovate the device; Install some sort of fail safe so that you know I won't tamper with it.  Should be easy enough."

Shaw scratched his beard, compiling his next sentence.  "Let me ask you this... What is the X-Men's best alternative?"  It was a negotiation skill.  The X-Men didn't have a great alternative.

[Emma Frost]

"I think you mean the X-Men aside from Wolverine and his, how shall I put this politely, red-haired pain in my ass? What? Too polite, Sebastian?" Emma quipped as she thought back to Stark and his damned machine. "Karenza would be more than happy to rip Selene's head off. She is usually outvoted on most things like this, so do keep that in mind. So, to answer your question, Selene is being kept in stasis. I see no other alternatives being put forth by anyone."

Emma hated the idea of bringing Sebastian back to San Francisco, but getting Selene the hell out of the X-Men's hands would be the best choice in the end. Having her around the students could only lead to disaster.

"I want you to see our old friend while the work is being done on the device," Emma replied as she looked at Shaw. "Where is this torture device anyway?" she asked as her mind tripped back to the Stark comment. "And no, you would not want to get Stark near this. He is not a good friend to mutants. I still haven't forgiven him for the Avengers' inaction in Genosha. He's a bigot, pure and simple. He wanted to kill The Phoenix. He's also a damned fool."