WELCOME TO DREAMWIDTH, HERO...

Good morning. I hope that everybody finds themselves well, and that those who ventured to that ocean-esque world are fully recovered from the venture. I thought a little downtime, if it could be granted, would be best before I attempted to address what it is I am about to.

Four days into the whole thing, Mr. Gilbert Nightray and I came upon came upon a curious text inside of a bookshop. The text, translated, is as follows:

"With that bright light, the clouds sizzled.
Volcanoes exploded and the seas flooded.
Doom came.
Vulcanus, they said, needed us.
They took some of us."

The rest, unfortunately, has been disconnected from the page. It is not much, but it speaks volumes about the history of that world. Even if it raises more questions than answers, it begins to point us in the right direction.

Mr. Nightray and I speculated as to its meaning at length, of course. Was that world a true alternate universe, or a potential future of the universe in which we currently find ourselves? Was Vulcanus the cause of the disaster inflicted upon that world? If they did take citizens of that world elsewhere, to where did they take them and to what end? If, as before, we were seemingly meant to pursue Vulcanus, why was our arrival so far separated?

There are not many clean conclusions to be drawn, which is where I am hoping you come in. If anybody else came across pieces of information like this, I would think it important that we combine what we've learned and discuss the possibilities. Snippets involving "imaginary time" and time-stream manipulation have already been mentioned elsewhere...

Lachesis is not always without rhyme or reason, and Vulcanus certainly is not. I think that this is a puzzle worth solving. I invite everybody to use this space for discussion of the topic, and I will gladly arrange any necessary meetings, should people find discussion over the Network to be uncomfortable.

I am, of course, available by phone and in person during my office hours at the Xavier Institute.

Meine Freunde, I have made it to thirty-four. Inform the masses of this glorious achievement. I demand cupcakes, preferably of some miraculous, beer-themed variety.

Let's see... Last year, I saw the yet-again arrival of a friend to the City and had a date cancelled. I'd wonder if this year it might also be a somewhat eventful day, but, as I'm fond of noting, such queries might be asking for a less-than-sunny day to befall you. So I shall just assume it will be as normal as things can get around here.

I have been distant, I feel. I apologize. How are things?

[ Hello, there, Network. You are now presented with a perhaps-familiar face, though it's not one that's been broadcast over the communicators before. This is Kurt Wagner's choice of disguise, and he smiles very convincingly for the camera. He's in some sort of dining hall, well-dressed (by appearance, at least) and seated beside another potentially-familiar individual. ]

Certain people close to us might have noticed we're running late in returning from vacation. As it turns out, we decided rather suddenly to make our return trip aboard this lovely ship, here. Never you worry, though, we are having a fantastic time and meeting plenty of wonderous people.

[ The lady beside him, also dressed formally, bats him lightly on the arm] Heads up. Blondie and Frank.

[ Both Selina and the holographically-disguised Kurt adopt very bright expressions as they're greeted by a voice beyond the camera's view. There's a short bout of friendly hellos between the off-camera couple, and Selina promises that they'll meet up for drinks later. Once the interruption is done with, Kurt turns back to his communicator. ]

We are Stefan and Emeline Müller, by the way.

A stage actor and romance novelist, respectively.

Introduced by a mutual friend, residents of Westchester... This is so entertaining, it almost makes up for the split lip and the shiner I've got hiding under this hologram.

[ As if on cue Selina delicately pushes back the sleeve of her dress, revealing the discolored bruising that reflects some rough handling. ]

Honestly, you'd think they forgot how to treat a lady.

Oh! That reminds me! Apart from wanting to let friends and aquaintances know we are alive, we do also have a warning... Do not try to teleport into the countries blocked off to us. They are apparently very good at finding you if you do that sort of thing.

Just to let you know. Hopefully, that is helpful.

I am sure I should mention at some point that Logan, the Wolverine, has gone. That, or he is hiding very well. It has probably become noticeable at this point, however. I thought to quip last week about how we might be at least assured he wasn't a Skrull, but that would have surely been in poor taste.

That said, I hope that those recovered from Vulcanus are doing as well as they can be. My thoughts are with you and your loved ones. And... Everybody, really.

I wish I could suggest even some temporary alternative to this... Ach. What would you even call it? This heavy air. This-- This supposed pause between battles. There are things happening in this world, dreadful things, but... What do we do but wait? What can we do? Waiting for the next movement, that is always the maddening part.

After a certain point, there were always enough X-men for team sports, baseball or volleyball games in-between crises. That will be me getting off track and getting nostalgic, though. Even that simple thing has changed. Perhaps it would seem foolish, now, as I am sure it would here. Aside, it is not quite the season.