Berlin, Germany

Christoph Nord, or David North as he had taken to calling himself over the course of many years, sat undisturbed at an outdoor café. A cup of coffee sat on the table beside him, and he wore a pair of sunglasses while focusing on the book in his hands. He had been granted a leave of absence from S.H.I.E.L.D. after the deaths of his teammates, Marcus Raven and Lydia Del Ruiz. The man called Maverick had chosen to spend that leave in his home country.

Unfortunately though, it was not always easy to escape the call of duty, a fact North was about to be reminded of. He could tell she was approaching and he didn't even look up from his book when he said, "Hello Terry."

Theresa Rourke, or Siryn as she was called in the field. A young Irishwoman and the daughter of Sean Cassidy, a man who was a hero at one time in his life. She planted herself in the empty chair and crossed her legs.

"How'd yeh know it was me?" she asked.

North marked his spot in the book and removed his sunglasses. "Your perfume. After all this time with S.H.I.E.L.D., I would have expected you to be able to sneak up on someone by now."

"Who said I was trying to sneak up on you, Mav?" she asked, utilizing the nickname he had picked up over the years. "What are yeh readin'?"

"The Spy Who Came in from the Cold," said David. "It's a John le Carré novel."

"Spy novel, eh?" asked Terry. "Can never get away, even when on vacation, huh?"

"Guess not," said David. "But what's going on? I doubt you came all the way to Berlin just to discuss my reading habits."

"We've been given an assignment," said Terry.

"I'm on leave."

"It's important," said Terry. "Some terrorists with ties to Sinister have been makin' waves. Bishop and Shard have a lead on them an' they need back-up."

"I'm sorry, but I'm really not interested Terry," said David. "I want to enjoy the rest of my vacation while it lasts."

"Mav, please. This is my last job," she said.

This caught David's attention. "You're leaving?"

Terry nodded. "After Lydia and Marcus... I can't do it anymore. X-Force has too many bad memories for me. Fury asked me to help out on this final job. After that, I'm done. But I wanted either yeh or Wisdom there, and Fury says he hasn't been able to reach Wisdom."

David sighed. "I don't know... I'm still not sure if I'm ready to jump back into action just yet."

Terry reached a hand out and gently placed it on David's own hand. She looked at him with pleading eyes. "Please David."

"Fine," said David. "When do we leave?"

Marvel 2000 Proudly Presents

The Return of Dino Pollard to

THE NEW DEAL
Part Two

United Nations

"Is this a good idea, Colonel?"

Colonel Nick Fury, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., sat in a meeting with the United Nations Security Council. He removed a cigar from the jacket of his military suit. Before he could light it, someone else spoke up.

"Colonel, there's no smoking in here."

Fury rolled his eye and placed the cigar back in his jacket. "I'm positive, it's a great idea," he said. "These Dark Riders have been posing problems for you. Now, I know you don't wanna get involved in Iraq, but superhuman forces pose a problem. So my team goes in, neutralizes the threat, and then they're gone."

"I don't trust this, Colonel. Why not utilize Excalibur?"

"Too high-profile," said Fury. "Team X is used to more covert operations. They can handle a smash and grab like this."

"Some of these operatives you've selected for Team X were recently accused of treason."

"And those charges were dropped," said Fury. "Trust me, they can do the job."

Hammer Bay, Genosha

Pete Wisdom stood on the balcony of his hotel, a lit cigarette dangling from his nicotine-stained fingers. His room looked out over Magda Square, the official center of Genosha. Magneto's citadel could be viewed off in the distance and Wisdom puffed on the cigarette while contemplating his current course of action.

He had won over Byron Calley with ease. Now it was time to begin the next phase of his plan. Wisdom wondered just how long it would be until Magneto was taken down. Although other supervillains had their own nations, Magneto was a bit more unpredictable than the likes of Doctor Doom.

Wisdom heard a knock at his door. He walked inside the room and set the cigarette down in an ashtray. When he arrived at the door, he looked through the peephole and saw a gorgeous young woman with dark hair and Mediterrenean features, dressed in a short skirt and tube top.

"Who is it?" he asked.

"Your friend thought you might like a personal visit," she said.

"Which friend?" asked Wisdom.

"Said his name was Nick."

Fury? Wisdom had his doubts about the situation, but he also had another thought. He opened the door and motioned for the young woman to enter. She smiled at him and stepped into the room. "Thank you."

Wisdom closed the door behind her and leaned against it, folding his arms across his chest. "So... Nick sent you, hmm?"

"That's right," she said. She looked at the bed. "So how do you wanna do this?"

Wisdom stepped up to her and wrapped his arms around her. One of his hands gripped her hair and he pushed her towards him, pressing his lips to hers. It was a kiss that had confirmed his suspicions. He pulled her away and threw her against the wall.

"Like it rough, I see," she said. Wisdom pushed her up against the wall. He lifted up his free hand and pointed at her. The tip of his finger extended into a white-hot finger knife, pointed directly at the woman's forehead.

"What say we drop the act, Raven?" he asked.

"What's wrong, Peter?" asked Raven. "The exotic look doesn't fly with you? Maybe the chestnut-haired innocent schoolgirl works?"

Her appearance shifted before his eyes, into a form he was far too familiar with—that of Katherine Pryde, the former X-Man called Shadowcat. And one of the few women Wisdom could actually say he was in love with. Raven's clothes also shifted, changing into a schoolgirl outfit.

"Are you trying to get me to kill you?" asked Wisdom.

"Sorry, perhaps this look?" asked Raven, her appearance changing again. Now it was the form of Lydia Del Ruiz. Wisdom clenched his teeth and pulled her away from the wall, throwing her to the floor. Raven's appearance changed yet again, this time assuming the form of the blue-skinned, red-haired woman Wisdom was used to her as. She regarded him with her yellow eyes and smiled. "Peter, Peter, Peter... we really must work on those rage issues you have."

"What do you want, Mystique?" he asked.

"The direct approach, I like that in a man." She pulled herself to her feet. "I think the question should be, what do you want? Why are you in Genosha?"

"Vacation," said Wisdom. "Heard it was nice this time of year."

"Genosha's not a nice place any time of year, at least not for you," said Mystique.

"How's it feel being Magneto's lackey?" asked Wisdom.

"I'll ask again—what are you doing here?"

"Unfinished business," said Wisdom. "That's all you need to know."

"I see," said Mystique. She sat down on the bed and crossed her legs. "Nice mattress. A bit big for one person, don't you think? Expecting company?"

"Nah, I just like to stretch out," said Wisdom. He motioned to a bottle of Cutty Sark and two empty glasses. "Drink?"

"Sure."

He dropped a few ice cubes in each glass and poured the scotch into both. Wisdom handed one glass to Mystique before he sat next to her on the bed. "How'd you know I was here?" he asked.

"That bar you were in last night," said Mystique. "The barkeep is a friend of mine."

"So why come to my room? And why in harlot skin? High muck-a-muck in the Genoshan cabinet should be able to go where she pleases," said Wisdom. "Unless you were just lookin' for a shag, not thinking I'd be able to tell it was you."

"Don't flatter yourself. Despite the Sean Connery routine you always play, you're no James Bond," said Mystique.

"Don't recall hearing any complaints from you."

"That's because you fell asleep before I had the chance to say anything," said Mystique. "And I didn't want to arouse any suspicion. If one of Magneto's cabinet comes into a hotel looking for someone in particular, that draws a lot of attention. I have no interest in drawing any undue attention to myself."

"And invoking Fury's name like that? How did you think I wouldn't know it was you?" asked Wisdom.

"Wisdom, if I didn't want you to know it was me, you wouldn't know—trust me on that," said Mystique. "Now tell me, why were you meeting with Byron Calley?"

"He's an old mate."

"Don't bullshit a bullshitter, it never works. I've been playing this espionage game since you were in diapers."

"Guess that makes you a cradle-robber," said Wisdom.

"And it makes you a motherfucker," said Mystique. "What's your point?"

Wisdom shrugged and sipped his drink.

"Calley works at the prison, doesn't he?" asked Mystique.

"You tell me."

"He does, and I've already checked the prison records," said Mystique. "Jose Del Ruiz."

"You say that name like it means something to me."

"Oh come on," said Mystique with a tone of frustration. She walked over to the table where Wisdom left his cigarettes and drew one from the pack. "Let's stop acting like I was born yesterday." She placed the cigarette between her lips and looked around. "Light?"

Wisdom walked over to her and held up his middle finger. The tip of it turned to hot plasma. Mystique gave him an annoyed look. "Cute," she said. She held the cigarette over the fingertip and within seconds, smoke rose from the end.

Wisdom chuckled. "Okay, for argument's sake let's say I am going after Del Ruiz. What's it to you?"

"He's a troublemaker."

"He's an activist. I break him out, smuggle him out of the country, what can he do?"

"We have laws here."

"Says the former terrorist," said Wisdom.

"One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. You should know that better than anyone," said Mystique.

"So what are you gonna do?" asked Wisdom. "Arrest me?"

"I actually have something else in mind," said Mystique.

Wisdom smiled. "I'm listening."

S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier

A marvel of modern technology. The Helicarrier remains in flight in international airspace, allowing the Strategic Hazard Intervention and Espionage Logistics Directorate to owe absolutely no allegiance to any single country. They answer only to the United Nations.

In one of the Helicarrier's operations rooms, Fury stood in front of a round table that included the five mutants he had assembled for Team X. In the center of the table was a holographic projection of desert terrain. Each of the members of Team X had a folder in front of them, filled with photographs and information on their targets.

He was confident in the team he had selected. Katherine Pryde, called Shadowcat. David North, Maverick. Theresa Rourke, Siryn. Bishop. Shard. All of them had served as members of X-Force in the past, but with all the bad press assigned to that name, Fury chose to recycle the Team X label he had used in the past.

"Inside, you'll find the information you need on the Dark Riders," said Fury. "Dust, Gryphon, Downtime, Amun, and their leader, Post. What little intel we have on them says that they have ties to Sinister. Whether or not they're still working with him remains to be seen. Post is potentially the most dangerous of the entire team. All the others are relatively new to this game. Take out Post and the rest should fall without too much difficulty."

"Where's the drop?" asked Maverick.

"Just south of Baghdad," said Bishop.

"Iraq? I thought the U.N. didn't want S.H.I.E.L.D. involved over there," said Shadowcat.

"They don't, an' they also don't want any superhuman intervention," said Fury. "The place has enough instability without mutant assassins running around. But apparently the Dark Riders have gone freelance and they've been contracted to stir some shit up. So the U.N. is allowing to overlook S.H.I.E.L.D. and superhuman involvement in this instance. We just have to keep it limited to the Dark Riders. And avoid being seen. Shard?"

"Through our contacts, we've discovered that the Riders are holed up in a training camp near Baghdad," said Shard. "We go in, nab them, and get out. Keep damage to a minimum and try not to cause too much noise. Err... figuratively speaking, Siryn."

"We've got the HERMES system powered up and ready for deployment," said Fury. "Bishop, you're the field commander of this op, you wanna take it from here?"

"We go in with two waves," said Bishop. "Wave one will be Shard and Shadowcat. Shadowcat's intangibility will allow them to slip in unnoticed. They'll handle most of the wetworks, disable whatever security may pose a threat. Just disable, we want to keep this bloodless to avoid any accusations of U.N. involvement on either side of the Iraqi conflict."

"That also means no S.H.I.E.L.D. threads, obviously," said Shard.

"Wave two will be Maverick, Siryn and myself," continued Bishop. "Once Shard and Shadowcat have finished their task, we come in with guns blazing. The Dark Riders won't be easy to take out, so we have to move fast. Since Post's attacks are energy-based, leave him to me."

"Get in contact with us the second you've got the Riders contained and we'll transport you out with the HERMES," said Fury.

"Suit up, people," said Bishop. "We've got a job to do."