Alias (In-Character)

New Angeles
Eidos
Ashley Coleman
12:11 AM
Her breath slowed and steadied as she watched the man. He was right, she was rambling. He caught it before she could slow down.
Well, atleast he hasn't kicked us out.
She thought to herself, making a mental note to make sure he didn't. She raised an eyebrow when the man said he was the doctor. She definitely didn't place him as the doctor type. Well, he was the only shot Nine had at surviving.
"How did he end up like this?"

Ashley thought back to the alleyway. She felt pressure around her neck, picturing the man with the metal arm choking her. Her hand brushed up against her throat as she rubbed it slowly. Her stomach curdled when she saw the man Nine had killed, his neck twisted at an odd angle. The lifelessness in his eyes. She felt like she was going to be sick.
Focus

A little voice nagged in her mind, pulling her back to reality. She shook her head. "Arcadia."She said the worlds slowly, like she was repeating them, before continuing. "I thought they were criminals roughing him up, trying to kidnap him or something. There was a guy that could turn his arm to metal, he probably did that to his body." She paused, looking over his various other wounds. They didn't look fresh, but older wounds that reopened. "I have no idea how he got the cuts. I just met him today, I don't even know his real name. They just called him 964. I call him Nine for short"
She took a deep breath. She was calm again. Nine was getting help. She did a good thing.
"
Do you think he'll live Dr. Seamyar?"
She asked Lepton, slumping down in an empty chair. She was close enough to see what Lepton was doing to Nine, but not too close to get in the way.
She would have to call someone, to explain to her family that she wasn't just some criminal. Her parents maybe? No, she didn't want to be the one to have to tell them.
Patricia She thought to herself. Patricia was her deceased older-brothers wife. The two were close, and she lived back in New York. She would believe her.

She felt her pockets, remembering her phone. She wasn't stupid enough to call from it, but could Arcadia can track phones, can't they? She let out a sigh of relief, she left her phone in her bag back in the alleyway. She laughed quietly to herself, she dodged a bullet there. Her face drained realizing that she had left her wallet in her bag as well. She glanced at Lepton as he observed Nine. She'd have to worry about payment later.

New Angeles
Slums
Vector Anderson

1:00 PM
Though Vector left the old office building, his thoughts remained on the hostage inside. Pulled to the front of the office were various PeaceKeeper vehicles, forming a perimeter. Among the vehicles was Vectors private car, the cadet from earlier resting by it with a tablet, scrolling through it. Vector rested his rifle on his shoulder and made his way to the car, unloading his rifle and setting it inside on the seat. He started to peel off his combat gear, his body sweating underneath it.
He tossed his jacket and shirt into the backseat of the car, reaching into his back to pull out a gray tank top, slipping it on over his body. Around his neck still hung his PeaceKeeper badge. His hair hung down in front of his face, and he pushed it backwards away from his face. He reached into his pack, pulling out a second hat and setting it over his hair. He grabbed a pack of cigarettes in the side of the pack, pulling one out before returning the pack back into his bag. He lit the smoke and let it rest in his mouth.
An ambulance came down the road, pulling up to the side of the road. He whistled at the cadet.
"Hey kid, who's the ambulance for?" The cadet made his way to Vector, his eyes glancing at the ambulance. "Err, there was a little commotion sir. Someone shot the man in the knee cap, then knocked him unconscious." Vector smiled, but held a confused look on his face. "Someone? Not one of our guys?" The cadet shook his head. "No sir." He pulled up a picture of the woman in cuffs. "We're looking her up in the database, but haven't found her yet."

Vector paused and took a closer look at the girl, taking a puff of his cigarette. He pressed on his arm, a monitor flipping open as he scrolled through it. "That's the girl from earlier, the one that triggered Eleven at the site." He began, sliding over to a page labeled "Eleven". "I had the drone face-match her in the database. Her name is Alexandra Morris. AKA, the Morrigan. She works-sorry worked', with D.E.E.R"
He smirked, flipping the monitor down. "Looks like this is a case for Arcadia. She was operating in America without a pass it looked like." The cadet nervously licked his lips. "But sir, she interfered with a Peacekeeper investigation. She knocked out Sloan!" Vector nodded and pointed towards the ambulance. "Yeah, and she shot the guy in the knee. Less work for us to do. Where she being help at?"
The cadet motioned to a black SUV, a group of guards gathered around it awaiting orders. Nodding to the cadet, Vector made his way to the SUV, ordering the guards to give him some room. He knocked on the door of the SUV, opening the back door and looked in at the prisoner
Her face was cute, aggravated hazel eyes looked up at the Detective as he leaned on the door of the vehicle.
"Knock, Knock. How's it going Morrigan?"

 
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New Angeles; Furor Hideout
12:52PM July 29th, 2030.
Riley “Jinx” Arondóttir

Now that the detective disappeared, Riley quickly dropped her helpless hostage facade and pulled herself from the chair. With a small grimace she inspected her wrists where the green mohawked scum bound her. She was surprised he hadn’t noticed the metallic feeling underneath her sleeve as he tied her wrists together behind the chair. Riley rotated her left hand, clenching and unclenching her fist while systematically opening and closing each of her fingers in between. The sound of her knuckles echoed a metal clicking mimicking that of cartilage cracking in a human hand. She smiled briefly before inspecting her flesh hand, copying the same movements as before. Once satisfied, Riley made her way out of the small office and into hallway.

She looked around, surveying her surroundings, including the floor below her and just outside the main entrance. There were a number of Peacekeepers already in the building and she wasn’t thrilled with the idea of them seeing, or remembering, her face. Riley stopped just outside of the room she was being held in and closed her eyes to gather her focus; she pictured a blonde woman with brown eyes and a medium build. That was the woman the Peacekeeper’s would see as she walked by them… to create an illusion to touch so many minds would be difficult, but it wasn’t unheard of for Riley.

After several minutes, Riley’s blue eyes shot open. She had identified all of the individuals in the factory and worked her magic in spreading the face they were to see as she went by. She grinned menacingly and began her casual stroll out of the building, flashing a sinfully sweet smile to the officers she passed on her way out. Riley emerged from the building, wincing at the intrusive sunlight in her eyes. As her vision adjusted to the cruel change in light she noticed a man being loaded into the back of an ambulance. Riley took note of his appearance as he was likely the Furor survivor her dear old detective had left behind, and she would need to pay him a little visit later.

Riley pulled a pair of sunglasses from inside her jacket pocket, put them on, and headed toward the paramedic who was giving the ambulance the go ahead to take the victim to the hospital. As she approached, the paramedic turned around; ”Miss, you shouldn’t be wandering around. Please, come and take a seat so we can examine you properly.

”No sweetheart. I need to examine you.” Riley countered as she slipped her ungloved hand to the woman’s exposed forearm, searching for which hospital the Furor survivor was being taken to. Angeles North; a hospital located just outside of the slums. ”Thanks. Have a lovely day, miss.”

New Angeles; Angeles North Hospital
1:43PM July 29th, 2030.
Riley “Jinx” Arondóttir

Riley hated hospitals but she couldn’t let the Furor slime be taken into Peacekeeper’s custody, it was too big a risk she wasn’t willing to take. Swallowing her fear of the porcelain palace and cursing silently to herself, she headed toward the emergency room entrance. There were ambulances coming and going, all of them transporting some unfortunate person in need of urgent care. The emergency room itself was welcome to walk-ins who couldn’t find a clinic willing to take them, but the wait was always hours because priority was given to acute cases. She wondered where her friend would be on the list to be seen…

She entered the room and made her way to an empty seat, dodging the sick and dying as she went by. Sitting with her legs crossed one over the other, she removed her sunglasses and put them back in her jacket pocket. Riley's eyes scanned the room but it was unlikely he was left in the waiting room; being a suspect to a crime meant he was likely already getting comfortable in a bed with one or two armed guards at his curtain. She sighed with a heavy shrug of her shoulders and focused on looking beyond the waiting room and into triage. Triage was worse than the waiting room… there were dozens of people, a handful of them screaming or crying in pain, and even a few who were profusely bleeding. Doctors and nurses buzzed about, attending one patient to the next. She couldn't understand why anyone would willingly choose their profession; long hours, whimpering patients, and annoying families. Riley scoffed at the thought of family visiting their loved ones in the hospital. It was pathetic.

Eight curtains in and Riley found her Furor friend. There was one guard standing post, which would be easy enough to deal with, but getting to him would be tricky. There were too many there for her to blanket in an illusionary veil; she would have to use her stealth suit. Riley exited her seat and headed toward the bathroom. She entered the germ infested room and looked around pale faced for any potential patrons who would see her. The bathroom was completely silent other than the constant dripping from the tap. There were no toilet flushing, sniffling noses, or sounds of toilet paper to alert her to anyone's presence but to be safe she quickly looked at the foot of each stall to make sure there was no one there. In any other instance she would have looked through the wall but Riley wasn't keen on seeing someone's flustered face as they try to discard their bowels after days of constipation. Confirming there were no people to see her, she knelt down and pressed a trigger disguised as a small silver button on her boot, activating her suit to phase her into nothingness…

With careful movements Riley exited the bathroom and walked cautiously toward triage. She had to be careful not to bump into anyone as she didn't want to cause an unneeded scene. Not yet anyway.

Riley's steps were soft against the linoleum floor. It didn't matter that she was quiet on her feet, the triage room was so loud that no one would have heard her anyway. As she drew closer to the Peacekeeper guarding her target, a hidden blade from her hand extended out and past her wrist. She chose to use Respect, her phasing dagger. Riley had no respect for the Peacekeepers and thought it was fitting to slay someone where he stood, without him even knowing she was coming, with a dagger that had such a name. Her footsteps increased in speed as she closed the gap between her and the guard. Once she was close enough, she side stepped around him, drawing her blade up to his neck and pulling it across his jugular as she circled to his back. The Peacekeeper’s blood spewed from his neck, covering the nurses walking by him. Before the man’s body could even hit the ground, the hospital was filled with shrieks of terror. It wouldn’t be long before another squad was deployed; she had to act quick.

Riley slipped behind the curtain and stared at the Furor member, who was now wide eyed with fear and shaking in his bed as he listened to the shrill screams from outside his very small safe space. ”I need you to stop being a scared little girl and listen to me very carefully. Understood?”

"What… what. WHO'S THERE, WHO ARE YOU?” Panic was settling into the Furor member’s voice as he frantically looked around the small space behind the curtain for who the voice belonged to.

Riley sighed heavily and walked toward the man, grabbing him by his neck and throwing his head back into his bed. ”Just shut up and listen, OK. I’m going to lay this out for you… You can’t see me because I’m an extranormal but I’m here to set you free, so you can seek revenge on that shit head Peacekeeper detective who stormed your little hideout at the factory today. SO, when I break your cuffs… you’re going to get as far away from here as possible before more Peacekeeper’s show up and kill you.. Because right now, there’s a dead guard outside your curtain and really, only you could’ve killed him, because I’m not even here, remember?.”

Riley released the lesser Furor member and grabbed the chain between the cuff on the bedrail and the cuff on his wrist. She pulled apart the chain links and watched as they snapped and fell to the ground. Her icy gaze fell on the insect in the bed, who was shaking in his skin and not moving. The woman sighed again, grabbing the Furor member by the collar of his hospital gown and tossing him out of the bed. His body hit the cold ground with a heavy thump but it was enough to trigger him to get to his feet and start moving. ”Go on, get out of here. I need you to live for my plan to work.”

She watched as he fumbled through the curtain and joined the havoc of people evacuating the building. Riley rolled her eyes at just how long that took her and began her exit. As she left the curtain she looked down at the Peacekeeper’s body; lifeless on the ground drowning in a pool of his own blood. She smiled cynically, stepped over him, and left.

New Angeles; Riley's Apartment
5:27PM July 29th, 2030.
Riley “Jinx” Arondóttir

Riley sat in bed, a cigarette resting between her pointer finger and middle finger. Her back was against the brick wall, her legs crossed one over the other in front of her. She bounced her top foot up and down as she watched as the curtains danced with the breeze from the window she had left open. Riley took a long drag of her smoke, pursed her lips into an ‘o’ shape, and blew donuts into the air. Her mind wandered back to the young detective, Anderson. She smiled softly at the thought of him coming to her rescue. Her smile twisted into one with a more seductive nature as she thought about him looking back at her with his concerned eyes and compassionate smile. The Peacekeeper could prove useful to her in more ways than one if she could get her hands on him… Surely there was a darkness in his soul she could exploit.

Riley reached into her back pocket and pulled out the card he gave her. She examined the small piece of thick paper, playing with the edges of the card with the tip of her finger. Riley had succeeded in the mission given to her; thwart the Peacekeeper’s and keep them off Shade’s tail but she wanted more from the Detective. It would be helpful to have someone on the inside, or even, someone on her side, with his skill set and connections. Surely Sebastian wouldn’t approve but Crow would likely find the benefit in it as long as Riley presented the option properly. Her devious smile returned as she picked up the cell phone sitting on her bed and dialed the Detective.

The phone rang three times before the Detective answered the phone, his voice coming through the speaker. ”Detective Anderson. Who’s this?”

”Uh, hello.. This us, uh… This is Riley. You um, you saved me earlier…” She replied, her voice purposefully sheepish in tone. Riley had to remember that she was a victim of a terrible incident earlier in the day and would have to continue to act it for the time being.

”Oh hey, Riley! How’re you holding up?” The Detective sounded surprised she was calling but the tone in his voice quickly shifted to being happy about her phone call. A small smiled appeared on Riley’s face knowing he wasn’t bothered by her call and for a brief moment, she felt like a dumb teenage girl.

”I’m doing better now, thank you. I was such a wreck earlier I wanted to apologize.” As Riley carried on the conversation, her voice was becoming more steady and confident in her speech. She couldn’t play the helpless hostage forever; it would kill her.

”Nothing to apologize for! You went through a lot…” The Detective paused before continuing. ”Did you think of anymore information… or.. “ Anderson’s voice began to trail off; he wanted to know why she was calling. Riley grinned, she appreciated that he was a man who got straight down to business.

”Yes… I guess I did. Lucky for me you were there. And no, no.. I didn’t think of anything else, I’m sorry Detective.. I’m actually calling because I want to thank you properly, if you would let me that, that is. You mentioned that I could call you if I wanted to get a drink sometime. I think I owe you at least that much.” Riley slipped a few unsure pauses in the beginning of her response to maintain the awkward girl act but she was also a woman that got straight down to business and went after what she wanted.

"I'd really like that! Some of the other Peacekeepers and I are heading to a bar in Chinatown tomorrow, if you'd like to come..." Anderson cleared his throat, swallowing back nerves creeping up on him. "as my date."

Riley’s smile widened into a lavish grin. She had a hunch the detective had a thing for her with how close he sat to her in the building, his knees knocking against hers while he made sure she was alright. In a quick rush to cover up his words, a clear avoidance to hide his anxious question, he continued. ”If not that’s totally cool! We could just grab coffee another time or something.”

She let the Detective’s words hang for a moment or two before giving him her answer; it was always best to make them wait. ”Your date?” she asked, confused at his question. Riley waited a second before continuing. ”That actually sounds really nice, Detective. I would love to be your date but on one stipulation! You must let me buy you a drink.”

The Detective released a breath he had been holding in anticipation of her answer and laughed slightly. ”Awesome! Cute girl and a free drink, how’d I be able to pass that up!?”

”You would be an idiot to do something like that.” Riley returned his laughter and teased the man innocently.

”I’m a lot of things, but an idiot isn’t one of them.” He returned her same teasing tone. ”I’ll text you the details in a bit, have to get back to work.”

”Alright Detective, I’ll see you then.”

”I’m looking forward to it!” The Detective ended, a hint of excitement in the tail end of his sentence.

A click of the phone signaled the end of their conversation. Riley held the cell phone to her mouth, as if it was supposed to guard her from saying anything. She grinned again before putting the phone down on the bed and took a long overdue drag from her smoke. I guess I should report back to the Crow later on...

@TheQueensGuard
 
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xUvK4D.jpg


Emilia Bachmeier

Emilia's thoughts were a constant pit of turmoil. Her heart was a repetitive ache and need she could not satisfy. She worried for him, she guilted over what she'd done. Emilia couldn't change the fact that she'd abducted her boyfriend, or former boyfriend... She wasn't quite sure what they were anymore nor was she sure she wanted to know after this, particularly after Elijah woke up.

Emilia knew she'd just betrayed him despite them being away from each other for two years after some stupid ceasefire. She should've killed him right then and there if she knew Arcadia was going to go after him again. She should've known, but her mind rang loud and often over the next hour or so. What would happen next for Elijah? Would he be okay? It was all her fault.

Her contemplations were cut off when Naomi finally rejoined her at the table after a grueling session with the "safety squad" as Emilia dubbed them. She shrugged at Naomi's words, chest tight. It was somewhat relieving to hear that Naomi hadn't said a word of what'd truly happened at the warehouse. Emilia swallowed her pride and began to speak in a low tone. There was only one way to position their story.

"We met each other at a bar, we had sex, and then we started dating. We were dating for a while, there was more sex, I fell in love... but... We found out about who the other person really was one night two years ago. Instead of killing each other, we decided to go our separate ways. That's the short and simple version, the really fucked up "What the hell do I do now" version."



@Reythaak @TheQueensGuard
 

• Naomi • and • Emilia •
• Intuitive Haemopotent Replication •

• Current Powers: None.
• Location: Arcadia Station, New Angeles
• Time: July 29th, Noon-ish
• Interactions:Interrogating Emilia >:D(@Kat)

Idly, Naomi tapped her fingers on her bare skin, turning to face forward once more and closing her eyes as she listened, chin resting down close to her chest.

”You missed an answer there, Em. Why’d you want him dead instead of caught?” was the pointed response. She could think of a couple reasons why Emilia might have wanted to keep Reaper out of Arcadia, but hearing it from her would make a difference.

“I didn’t want him dead. I didn’t want him caught either.”

Emilia glanced at Naomi.

“When did I give off the impression I wanted him dead? That man used to… Well, I mean, yeah. We used to be together. We just couldn’t continue after the whole showdown thing.”

The white-haired woman paused for a moment, the tapping stopping. Her head tilted to the side slightly as she went back through the day. ”When we were just starting to track him,” Naomi shrugged, ”It was the impression I got. And you kind of decided to swing first and talk… slightly later when he showed up at the warehouse. Didn’t give him the offer of coming with us.” Another pause.

”And him being part of Arcadia willingly might have meant good things for you previously-being-a-thing.” She flashed a smirk.

“You know Sydney wouldn’t allow that. I guess…” She slouched back in her chair, eyebrows furrowed. Emilia seemed to be deep in concentration for a few moments before she spoke again. “I guess the punch was my way of saying I was pissed off at him because I knew that if I tried to talk to him, he wouldn’t come with us, and I also knew that if I tried to talk to him, I wouldn’t be able to persuade him to come along. I’d just… break down and cry. It’s not like he felt my punch anyways. That guy is a man of steel, let me tell ya.”

Naomi rolled her eyes. ”And you wouldn’t have told her. Neither would he, or me. That solves the “not allowed” pretty quick, I think.” She quieted to let Emilia finish, however, watching her friend working through things a bit. ”Makes sense though, I guess.” She decided not to bring up the fact steel or not, she still rang his bell pretty hard. Underhanded tactics or not, it had worked. Her fingers started tapping again, slow and idle as she thought. ”We could have let him go,” she finally said with a sigh.

“But Sydney wanted him,” Emilia countered, her tone suddenly changed. “She wanted him in that prison. It was a mission we had to complete.”

It sounded like Emilia was torn and felt guilt for what she’d done.

A shrug. ”And he’s a man of steel, like you said.”

Naomi let it hang. She was prodding at this point, probably not a smart thing to do before they told Sydney what had gone on… ”It doesn’t matter much at this point, though. He’s here, now, regardless of any misgivings or could-have, should-have.”

“Yeah,” Emilia took a deep breath and sat up. “He’s here. What’s done is done. Sydney will give her follow up and we’ll carry on with our day.”

A few moments later, Sydney arrived and the duo stood up, ready to hear their report.
• Pills Carried: • None • (two vials of Reaper's blood stashed on her person)
 
alexandra morris
Omu Upied

DATE: July 29th
LOCATION: New Angeles
MENTIONS: Vector, Purifier
INTERACTIONS: Vector - @TheQueensGuard
——————————————————————————————
12:47 p.m.
New Angeles - Bordering territory between the slums and docks​

Two officers were behind her as they forced her towards their SUV, another leading the way. They shoved and poked as she shuffled along, her jaw clenched as she was clearly unimpressed with the situation. ‘No one but yourself to blame.’ She belittled herself internally and grunted in response.

“Let’s pick it up lady!” One of the officers from behind her called out.

Turning to look over her shoulder, Alexandra glared towards the officer. The other using his weapon to shove her. The brunette stumbled forward and chuckled as she looked back again with the shake of her head. “So polite you Americans.” The sarcastic whisper was drawn away by the small breeze that blew by, the stench of the nearby wharf able to fill even dull human senses. Coming to a halt in front of the door to the vehicle, Alex stood close and continued to smile softly. An officer approached from her left and moved to open the door, looking up slightly to meet Alex’s eyes. The tense silence remained for a few moments between the two. “Oh! Am I in your way?” She asked with raised brows. “I am so sorry about that.” She dipped her head slightly before taking a small step back. “Didn’t realize that the whole lot needed to be clear for you to open a door.” The sarcasm never faded.

Her choices today weren’t the best. From the moment she had said yes to Jacob she knew it would all be downhill. Alexandra was confident that they wouldn’t kill her, a decision like that would only cause way more problems than they needed. Besides they were called the Peacekeepers, killing just wasn’t fitting to such a name, especially if they were killing operatives from an equivalent, although more humane, agency. If she was going to spend a good amount of time stuffed in a cell she’d might as well entertain herself as much as she possibly could till she got there.

The door was opened and the officer stood aside. Alex grinned brightly as she walked around the door and prepared to step into the car. “There’s that American hospitality. Thank you kindly madame.” She bowed towards the woman.

“Get in the damn car.”

“Copy that.” Alex nodded and managed her way in.

She was joined by a single peacekeeper, the man that had been walking ahead of them. Looking around inside the car her gaze eventually landed upon the man sitting across from her. “Nice to meet you” she leaned forward and squinted as she read the man’s surname “Landon. I’m Alexandra, or Alex for short.” She shrugged. “Whatever works for you.” She explained. “So what’s the plan here? What’s the schedule?” Another sarcastic, self-entertaining question as she sat back straight, her eyes locked on his. Allowing the silence to linger for a bit she eventually nodded slowly. “Ah. I see. A mute. Must be difficult working for an organization that requires a lot of verbal communication.” She stated.

A heavy, over exaggerated sigh escaped Alex as she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. She just wanted this over with. Hopefully her car would still be parked where she left it when she arrived at the scene. All her camera gear was in there, her phone, apartment keys. Clenching her jaw she opened her eyes and stared passed the man across from her, ignoring his existence. ‘Fuck!’ she exclaimed in her mind. She’d have to figure all that out later. Maybe the Peacekeepers could retrieve it so it didn’t get wrecked or ransacked.

Her head turned to her left as there was a knock, the door being opened a second later. The momentarily blinding sun allowed for a figure to eventually fade into Alex’s adjusting cornea’s. A set of green eyes looking upon her in the car. “Ah, the prodigy detective.” She smirked. “Alex is fine actually, preferred even.” She commented simply with a nonchalant shrug and small nod.

The detective did an exaggerated bow. “In the flesh.” He took a puff of his cigarette, taking a seat beside the D.E.E.R agent.

“Alas, someone with some humor in this group of stiffs.” Alex said simply as she let out a small breath that could pass as a chuckle, intended towards the exaggerated bow.

“So Alex, I gotta ask. What’re you doing at our crime scene? You’re supposed to be retired. First at the site of the blast, when you took the fabric from the rubble. Now you’re here, knocking out one of our guys and shooting a suspect in the knee.” He asked, glancing out the door back at the building.

Leaning back in her seat the woman sighed, hazel eyes still upon the man. Looking away she scoffed and grinned while sitting forward slightly she then proceeded to laugh before turning her attention fully to the detective. “Has no one taught you not to question a lady's age, or weight? Retired? Please, don't make seem like an elderly woman.” She chuckled. “Willingly terminated is what that file should say.” Her words were simple as she looked away for a moment. Another deep sigh came from the brunette, she couldn't avoid the questions but that didn't mean she couldn't be annoyed by them.

“Willingly terminated sounds like you were fired, but quit before the papers were filed.” Vector replied, amused as he puffed on his cigarette. The smoke tucked in between two fingers as he ashed it outside of the open door.

She clicked her tongue and pursed her lips, her shoulders came up as her head bobbed from left to right in a gesture of unsureness. “Mmm...kind of like that. I’m sure you get the idea though.” She chose to halt that conversation there. He didn’t need to know the reasons for her departure or how and why, heck, he wouldn’t even be handling this situation shortly. Alex knew she was going to Arcadia, she knew this whole thing was going to be dealt with there. As rude as it might sound, what he had to say or what he chose to do, didn’t matter and he also didn’t have the clearance for certain information. All that being said, Alex liked this lad and liking someone more often than not led to information potentially ‘leaking’ out should Alexandra find herself being able to trust this man. It would take work, on his end at least.

“Part of me is actually hoping you’re back on D.E.E.R payroll. It’d be alot better than you being in cahoots with Furor.” He added as he returned his attention to her.

As Vector’s second statement came to an end she clenched her jaw and almost glared at him. “My purpose for being here is classified.” She playfully winked towards the young detective and smirked, if what she had said wasn't exactly enough for him to understand, well then perhaps the Americans needed to screen their potentials better. “As for the suspect and the guard.” she shrugged. “Despite stumbling into one of your obnoxious machinations I still had to attempt to remain under the radar, it was a bad call but” another shrug “let's just say I'm a little rusty.” she leaned back into the seat again. “I wouldn't be questioning the event with the suspect, I'd be thanking me instead, there's no harm in accepting some help detective.” Her eyes were on his again. “Good luck getting any information out of him though, he was a little stiff. I wish I had some more time with him.” Smiling at Vector, Alexandra dropped her head slightly. “Can I ask something of you now?” She raised a brow.

“I am thankful you kept him alive. Would’ve been a hassle tracking him down, or getting another source of information if you would’ve killed him.” He exhaled some smoke, adding. “Not so thankful that you knocked out Sloan. He’s a good guy, and a friend of mine. Now I’ll have to hear him bitch about the headache you gave him.” He paused, glancing at the woman. ”What do you needa’ know?”

“I like to think I’m a bit smarter than that. It’s always a bad decision to kill someone who could be useful.” There was a slow nod of understanding from Alex. “I do apologize for your officer. Unfortunately I had no other choice, had I not done what I had, well things could’ve gone worse. If you want, give him my number and tell him that he can call me and complain about the headache if he’d like.” She smiled. The detective then proceeded to answer her question. “If you’re willing to give information that’d be great, which then means that I have two things to ask for before you ship me off.” There was a small smile that remained on her lips. “I’ll go with the first thing I was going ask anyway.” She adjusted her position, coming closer to the edge of the seat she cleared her throat. “I have rather broad shoulders, the tightness of these cuffs and where I have to position my arms is extremely irritating. Is there any way you could cuff my hands infront instead?” She raised a brow as she looked at the man. “You have my word that I won’t do anything stupid. Believe me, had I wanted to escape this whole ordeal I would have.” She explained. Clenching her jaw with a small sigh she waited and hoped that he would comply. The soreness and small twangs of stabbing pain beneath her shoulder blades were starting to grow rather irritating.

Vector took the cigarette out of his mouth, slowly exhaling more smoke. His free hand ran down his face, covering his mouth for a moment as he thought on the lady's request. “Fine.” He murmured after a moment. “Reading over your file, you could’ve overpowered the troops but instead you complied. Turn some.”

Smiling softly towards Vector, Alexandra complied and turned her back towards him a little more. It was obvious that the man wasn't happy about her request. The fact that he agreed was a good sign and Alex would make sure to keep her part of the deal, not that she had any intentions to break out of this whole situation to begin with.

His left ring finger flipped open, a small key-fob extending from it. He swiped it against the absorber cuffs, the LED lights flickering off. “There. Put your hands out front.” He said to Alex, his voice rather casual rather than commanding.

In the brief moment that the cuffs disengaged, the brunette found herself clenching her jaw, senses beginning to overload. Tightly shutting her eyes she took in a deep breath. Vector’s voice was obnoxiously loud as he spoke, his cigarette infused scent flooding her nostrils as her brain analysed and registered every detail of it for future reference. Turning around to face him she smiled softly. “Thank you.” She spoke simply in regards to him abiding to her request. Placing her arms out in front of her, she pressed her wrists together and looked him in the eyes.

“Here’s what is likely going to happen. You’ll be held here until Arcadia sends a car to pick you up. You’ll be held overnight at North Arcadia Confinement Center until D.E.E.R hashes this all out with your bosses.” He explained

She nodded slowly to his words. “Okay.” she responded simply. “Are you going to be sticking around until then?” She questioned with raised brows. “I understand why no one here wants to make conversation with me but it would be nice to have someone to talk to. Perhaps we could share some intel, off the record of course.” She attempted to reassure him, besides she had absolutely no reason to betray Vector should he choose to speak with her.

Vector clamped the cuffs around her wrists again, but left some room for her wrists to breath. Flipping the cuffs back on, the LED lights flickered back on. He shrugged, resting his cigarette in his mouth once again. ”Sure, I’ll stick around and chat. Probably gonna have to check in with Arcadia anyway.”

“Which brings me to my second question. What can you tell me about Furor and how they operate here in America?” She had played the classified card earlier, but that was simply for the sole purpose of maintaining the facade of ‘secret agent’. She didn't think Vector was affiliated with Furor in any way, he didn't have that look or vibe of global chaos bringer. She knew that Americans weren’t fans of sharing high caliber, secret knowledge, but she could hope. Furor was a terrorist group and if any of these organizations had a common enemy, it was them.

He raised his eyebrow at her second question. He actually hadn’t encountered anyone from Furor on American soil before. The only time he encountered them on a large scale was in Lagos two years ago. Other times were just small groups, made up of a few dumbasses who just hated the government. “Uhhh. How they operate in America huh.” He repeated the question and rubbed the back of his head. He laughed slightly. “I have no idea how they operate in the States. I’ve ran into them a few times overseas, but today's the first time I’ve seen them ballsy enough to attack an American building.”

The trilling of the cuffs brought with it the dampening of her senses once again, it was almost a small relief in truth as it typically took a little time for everything to be processed and adjusted. Clearing her throat with a nod Alexandra turned her attention back to Vector as he spoke. She listened to him and watched him, studied him. It seemed she had caught him with a question he was unable to answer, ‘unfortunate’ she told herself.

Vector’s laughter faded off as he continued. “I’d say this bombing may be a warning of things to come. There have been rumors that Furor would attempt an attack on New Angeles, but they’ve been nothing more than that.” He trailed off, lost in his thoughts. Last time he fought them, he lost both his arms. Part of him was hoping they’d attack. It’d feel nice to get revenge on the masked freak that took out his arms. “I know the higher ups thinks this is an isolated incident, but I don’t. I feel like something is coming.”

Hazel eyes stayed on the detective as he carried on, she remained silent for the time being, just watching. The story of his encounter with Furor evidently held more to it than just a run-in. Alex couldn’t read minds but she could tell by the way he adjusted himself and trailed off, that there was something that went off in his brain about the aforementioned group. Information that she could potentially extract at a later time, it could be a dead end but it could also be useful.

“From my experience I can say with confidence that Furor doesn’t typically do isolated incidents, they more often than not ‘go big or go home’ as the saying goes.” Alex started. “I don’t know what your experience with them may have been like, and I won’t press for personal information as such. If you were to ask me, I would say that this event seems off in a sense. I’ve never encountered an isolated Furor incident, then again I can’t be sure about how they might do things here.” She sighed slightly. “It’s certainly something to keep an eye on. I don’t know if your faction will stay on this or if it’ll get handed up to Arcadia. Should this be, in any way, related to Furor, there will be more, much, much more. This only the tip of the iceberg, and if they’re planning and targeting certain people it’ll only get worse. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re looking to figure out a way to level the city.” She clenched her jaw and kept her eyes on Vector. “They’re nothing but a mob of lunatics with some twisted sense of justice and a distorted vision of some sort of utopia. Since their existence they’ve needed to be shut down.” Alexandra explained.

Furor was like a mutated hydra, although cutting off one head could potentially kill the monster, the best strategy would be to cut every single one off and prevent more from growing. They started in America and if the Purifier still resided here, this would be their best bet to shut them down. Alex hoped that she wouldn’t be shut down before she could get to him.
 
New Angeles
Dock District
Lindsey "Vex" Romero
11:00 AM
The outline of the reticle overlapped with the woman head. Vex exhaled slightly, a mixture of anger and disappoint escaping with the huff of breath. She was a little over half a mile away, tucked away in the top floor of an office building across the cargo-bay from the decrepit warehouse, the supposed hideout for Elijah Brandt. Arcadia beat her, and Elijah, to the warehouse. Killing the two Arcadia agents would only bring more problems for Shade, so for now Elijah would live.

The sniper watched silently as the white-haired agent talking with someone on a com-unit, while behind her the other agent and Elijah fought. Vex was a good shot, but not confident the Arcadia agent may take the bullet instead of Reaper. She frowned in disappointment as the white-haired agent broke the ground out from underneath the mercenary, and knock him unconscious. She sat up from the scope and turned on her comlink.
"Vex reporting in."
She said plainly, the other end of the radio quiet for a moment.
"Vex dear, how goes the hunting trip?"
Crow's confident and taunting voice made Vex only frown deepen. "I failed. Arcadia was already waiting for him." For a few moments, a tense silence hung in the air. "Oh well." Crow finally broke the silence. "I'm confident our friend Jinx will get the Peacekeepers off our tail at least. Come back to HQ and await further orders."
The com switched off, leaving a silence in the room once again as Vex stared out the window. Though Crow's voice was relatively cheerful, Vex knew she disappointed. Though Crow didn't openly hate Elijah, he was a loose end, and would've been happy to have him out of the way. Sebastian would've been glad that he was dead too for personal reasons, and the Doctor would likely be mad that she didn't test out his special bullets.


A failure like this made her look weak. Already the newest of the Shadows, Riley, was gaining more influence, and success, than her. Vex would put the girl in her place, and retain her position as a Shadow.

Unknown Location
Purifier
2:00 PM
Purifier sat upon his throne once again, gripping the metal arms rests tightly. One of his insurgency cells in the city was wiped out by the Peacekeepers, their green-fire wielding leader "Pyroclasm" dying with them. From his sources, one of the men had survived and managed to escape from a hospital. Now the man linked up with another one of the gangs that considered themselves apart of Furor. They would get their revenge, but it wouldn't be enough to satisfy Purifier. He would retaliate soon enough, but at the moment his focus was else where.

His thoughts were on the girl the Arcadia spy told him about. Maxine. He tasked Hardwire with finding the girls location, which he did easily. Only two Arcadia agents guarded her, which would be an easy grab from Furor. Originally he was going to bring Ashmonger to retrieve the girl, but instead Hardwire suggested Jan. Purifier thought back to the conversation.
~~
"Maxine was an easy find. Her and the Arcadia members live in the Suburbs at 9011 East Street."
"Good work. I'll have Ashmonger grab her when things settle down in a few days. Await for further orders Hardwire."

"Ashmonger may not be the best choice."
Though Purifier couldn't see the cyborg, his eyes narrowed at the computer screen the two of them talked through.

"You think I've made the wrong choice?" The words came out as a low growl, feelings of animosity slipping out with his words.
"Ashmonger has a reputation for being rather...Erratic. Though he is suitable for the job, he rarely sticks to plans. I anticipate he may get carried away and kill the girl. If I may suggest January for this task instead."
Purifier shifted in the chair uncomfortably. "Do you really think she's ready, or did she put you up to this?"

"I have never been one to take requests. I believe she is capable, and despite your fondness for the girl, she can use her abilities to keep the girl calm. If you think she may need extra protection, send some of the lower ranking members with her. This will be a worthy test for her."
Purifier was quiet for a moment. He let out a troubled sigh. "Fine. Two days from now, she can go get the child."

Flicking the monitor off, two goons wheeled the computer out, leaving their leader alone to think.


Outside New Angeles
North Arcadia Confinement Center
Director Sydney Pearl
12:29 PM
This was the first bit of good news Sydney received all day. Emilia and Naomi managed to successfully capture Reaper, who was later identified as Elijah Brandt, former Calendar Test Subject and soldier. Naomi gave him a nasty blow, and he was still out cold, so questioning would have to be until he was recovered, which shouldn't be long.
Something about the whole thing seemed...off. Though both girls reports were similar, why had Reaper not even fire a shot? After the girls fled the warehouse, Arcadia sent over a team to clean out the building for Intel and retrieve any evidence they could find. The team reported not a single bullet casing was found fired, despite a loaded pistol near the entrance of the upstairs room. Not only that, Emilia went toe to toe with the man and came out unscathed. The man was superhumanly strong, a single blow could've broken a bone. Perhaps this man wasn't actually Reaper, but a copy cat of sorts? No, the tests ran on the man came back that he had the June Serum in his body. It had to be something else. Sydney would have someone look into it.
For now she would congratulate the girls.


Her heels clicked on the floor, echoing them through the hallway as she entered the door way. She gave the two girls a friendly smile.
Emilia. Naomi.
As she said either agents name, she shook their hand.
I wanted to personally congratulate you two, bringing in the mercenary was honestly the best news I've had today. I'll be attaching a bonus to both of your paychecks accordingly.
She paused slipping her phone out of a pocket as it buzzed. She sighed and clicked decline, before turning her attention back towards the two women.
He hasn't woken up quite yet, nor has the research team finished sorting through his files, but I'm sure we'll find, thanks to you two. Hopefully it'll be something on the Hounds, or better yet Shade.
The phone buzzed in her pocket again. An annoyed sigh escaped her lips.
You two can relax the next few days, take a breather and recoup. Sorry, I have to take this.
She gave either agent one last smile before turning and walking back down the hall, answering the phone call.

London, England
D.E.E.R HQ
Rex Otto
8:46 PM (12:46 PM New Angeles time)
A pair of sunglasses rested on the mans face, hiding tired eyes. The sunglasses were purely ascetic, and the sun had just disappeared below the horizon. Originally he had planned on laying around watching Netflix before he clocked out, but of course duty had to call. Now he sat slumped in his chair in front of the office of Director Monika Wagner, the head of Foreign and Public Relations.
His chin was resting in his palm, he was straining to keep his eyes open. He had been zoned out for nearly ten minutes, and was ready to doze off out of boredom.

"Agent Otto, Miss Wagner is ready to see you."
The assistants voice was distant, and Rex hadn't even realized someone had entered the waiting room.
"Agent Otto?"
"Huh? Oh."
The blonde hair'd agent said, standing and slowly slipping his hands in his pocket as he leisurely followed the assistant. The assistant pushed open the door and motioned for Rex to enter, the sluggish man glancing at a plaque reading 'Director Wagner' as he strolled inside.

"Ms. Wagner."
Rex said plainly, slouching into a chair and keeping his hands in his pockets. The women glanced up from her paperwork and acknowledged Rex's presence with a quick smile.
"Hello Agent Otto, how're you doing?"

"Alright. Why'd you want me?"
"Straight to the point. Good."
The director paused and slid a file over with two fingers. A picture of a muscly woman was the focal of the open file, bold letters typed out next to it that read. "Alex Morris". Otto glanced at the file, leaning up to get a better look. He recognized her, an experienced agent that hadn't worked with D.E.E.R in a while.

"What about her."
Barrett got her and us in a load of shit, that's what. She's been out of service for a time now, and has been living in the states. He got a hold of her and convinced her to do a job, discreetly.
A sigh escaped Rex as he listen, quickly interrupting.

"Wouldn't this be a job for Barrett's guys, not me?"
"Normally yes, but she's currently in Arcadia custody. We've arranged a deal; we send another agent to escort her out of jail, and remain there with her until it's clear she isn't working for D.E.E.R anymore. Along with us having to pay a settlement for her knocking a Peacekeeper unconscious.
Rex frowned, a hand slowly slipping from his pocket and pulling the sunglasses onto his forehead.

"You're sending me to America?"
The director nodded, and slid a plane ticket towards him.

"You leave in forty minutes, and I'd pack your gloves. Just so you don't accidentally crash the plane with a slice of wind."

Australia
Hounds HQ
Eliza Nizan

11:16 AM (6:16 PM New Angeles Time)
The woman twirled a switch blade in her hand, balancing it on her fingers as she hummed a song softly. She blew a bubble, letting it pop softly before pull the gum back into her mouth. She had been waiting in the Leon Mayers office for a few minutes now, and was already getting restless. The small confound room made her nervous. She sat up straighter and let a sigh of relief as the door opened.
Finally

She thought to herself, watching as the leader of the Hounds entered the room and took a seat on the other side of the desk. She flashed him a smile, one he didn't return as he glanced at the switch blade in her hand.
"Don't touch my things Nizan."
"Sorry about that, I was getting bored."
The woman said, setting the knife lightly in his outstretched hand.
"Have you thought about my suggestion?"
She asked as the man put the knife back into the desk. Who nodded, a conflicted look on his face.
"I have. As much as I hate the idea of taking a kid, she does belong to Arcadia."
The man trailed off, and Eliza quickly interjected
"And she will be a weapon sooner or later. Why shouldn't she be ours?"
Mayer licked his lips nervously and started to nod before shaking his head.
"She's still just a kid. You know I don't like messing with kids."
Eliza nodded, a soft smirk on her lips as she said her suggestion
"How about I take a small group with me, just to watch the family and see how she is treated. We report everything back to you, and you can decide what to do while we are there."
The man was quiet for a moment, weighing out her words in his head. Finally he sighed and nodded.
"Fine, you can lead a team of five people. You don't life a finger without my say so. Got it?"
Eliza nodded quickly, flashing Leona grin as she stood.
"You won't regret this. If I may suggest, could I take Vivian with me? This may prove a valuable learning moment for her."
"You want to take the new kid?"
Eliza nodded.
"Fine. She's under your watch. Make sure she doesn't get hurt, if any action occurs."
"You have my word sir."
 
Vivian, Alexander, and Guest star Takano

Potted hydrangeas, bougainvillea, and nightshade seemed appropriate for the setting in Vivian’s eyes, though Alexander didn’t understand why she couldn’t bring roses. Roses were perfect. It symbolized power and passion. The thorns were a nice touch too. Alexander held the prisoner in a steel grip and pushed him down to the ground in the middle of the interrogation room, which seemed to be somewhat more beautiful and tolerable with Vivian’s creations. The way the flowers slithered and sparked to life made him feel confident in her ability to do her job. He grinned and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Alright, let’s see what you’ve got Viv.”

Vivian took a deep breath, eyes concentrated on the man as he struggled with the restraints around his ankles and wrists. The thorns on the bougainvillea moved swiftly across the cold tiled floor and lightly brushed against the man’s skin, slipping under his jaw and caressing his cheek.

“Takano Nakamura, was it?” Vivian spoke in a tone that was eerie. Her heels clacked against the ground in a monotonous rhythm, though her presence spoke volumes about what she wanted to do to him. Vivian crossed her arms over her chest and turned halfway, pausing to face the victim. He was a strong-willed man, he knew what was happening, and he knew how to inch his way out. That was one thing Vivian could not allow. She came down to his eye level and smiled, observing his reactions as the bougainvillea crawled across his body.

“You’re part of the Himura Family. I heard they were a well-known gang, some kind of yakuza, was it? You guys are the biggest crime syndicate in New Angeles and establish connections quicker than a mouse can sniff out its cheese. How’d you get to be so notorious?”

Takano glanced at the woman, then down at the plant that inched across his chest. He shifted uncomfortably before, muttering in Japanese before replying in English. “We kill bitches like you. Viv.” He spat on the ground towards her as he mockingly said her name. He glared at her before looking away towards the man who stood, his arms crossed. “You always have women do your dirty work, big man?”

Alexander was about to get on Takano’s tail for mocking his abilities, however, Vivian seemed to have it all lined. The plant crawling on Takano suddenly squeezed around his arms, tiny thorns digging into his flesh as Vivian narrowed her eyes and suddenly grabbed the man by the jaw.

“Look at me,” she hissed as her fingernails dug into his cheek. “You were there, weren’t you? At Royal Bank. Too bad you didn’t kill me then. You were weak, you pitiful soul. Why were you there in the first place? What was your goal?”

Takano grimaced in pain for a moment, before growling lowly to help fight the pain in his arms off. He looked the woman in the eyes, his gaze narrowing for a moment confused by the question. “Royal Bank?” He repeated the name of the bank, before laughing slightly. “Holy shit! I remember you. The girl who cried because she got her boyfriend killed.” His laughter grew. “You’ve grown up girl.” He nodded towards the other man in the room. “Guessing this is your new boy? Would be a shame if I killed him too.”

She gripped Takano’s jaw and forced him to face her, eyes angered and deadly. It was clear Takano was a fool.

“I wonder what your boss would say if I shoved nightshade down your throat. It’s particularly poisonous. No one said you needed to focus on that other man in the room. He’s just a spectator. Now, I’ll ask again. Why were you there?”

As she threaten him, his laughter quickly died off. “For money. A job gone wrong is all it was. You were at the right place at the wrong time.” He scoffed, laughing a little as he yanked his head out of the girl’s hands. “It’s funny really. You think killing me is going to bring that guy back? I still hear you crying out his name. What was it again? Bryan? No, it started with an R.” He paused, trailing off before smiling and looking his torturer in the eyes. “Ryan, that was it, wasn’t it?”

Her skin prickled at the sound of the perpetrator saying Ryan’s name. She didn’t need Takano sharing her supposed life story with her so-called boyfriend, especially not with Alexander in the room. The thorns dug deeper into Takano’s skin, piercing the second layer of flesh.

“Don’t say his name like you know who he is,” she threatened. “Who killed him? Even better, who made the order to kill him? Your boss?”

He scowled in pain, writhing at thorns digging into his arms and piercing his chest. “You fucking bitch.” He said plainly, trying to free himself from the chair only to cause himself more pain. “Who killed him? You would be the one to do that. Everything was going smoothly until he tried to be a fucking hero.” Spit dripped from his mouth, anger growing in his eyes. “You’re worse than we were. We gave Ryan a quick death. Boom, one bullet to the brain.” A mad laugh escaped his lips. “I still remember the last breath he took, gasping as he looked up at you. Tell me Viv, do you remember?”

She could remember. She could remember his eyes, scared but good. He was happy, but afraid to die. Vivian couldn’t bear his face appearing again in the recesses of her mind. She immediately latched her hands onto his throat and pinned him down to the ground, her grip like steel as she leaned down and breathed in his face, a dark purplish vapor leaving her lips and wafting towards Takano’s nose– the poison from the nightshade berries that could kill man in an instant after ten or so.

“I remember that I’m here to kill because you aren’t being very helpful to me.”

“Wait, Vivian,” Alexander warned, stepping forward. “Stop. Hold on a second.”

Alexander approached the duo. The first effect, dizziness, would come along almost immediately to Takano. The more her emotions were struck, the faster her abilities came and the less she was able to control. She was able to hold back for a few moments as she loosened her grip on Takano’s throat and spoke again.

“Let’s be honest. You will never break my spirits nor will you slow down my hunt for the man that ended Ryan’s life. His life was more precious than anyone else’s. He had a lot to live for and you fuckers ruined it. You “fucking bitch” ruined it. You are so pathetic, so scared, I know. You have fears, you put on your stupid facade because you’re used to this, but I know the truth. You fear death just as much as anyone of us and I can give you death in the most intoxicating way possible. You won’t even realize you’re dying until the last moment when you finally feel your heart slow down to its very last beat.”

Takano scoffed at her words and tried to keep his eyes open from the constant blur that shifted in and out of light. He gasped for air and forgot about the pain on his skin. Instead, he was focused on the pain growing in his lungs. “You’re–,” he coughed,”–going to die trying to avenge him.” Takano managed to finish the sentence, the words becoming jumbled together.

“Wait, Vivian! Stop it!” Alexander yelled in a stern manner as he reached out to touch Vivian and pull her away. She grimaced and shrugged Alexander’s grip off.

“You’re going to die because Ryan wills it,” Vivian hissed, immediately opened the man’s mouth, and kissed him hard and deep, the poisonous vapors releasing two times fold, rushing into the man’s system. Alexander just barely managed to pull Vivian back before Takano spoke his last words, “Ryan would be disappointed.”

The man’s body fell limp and Vivian stared in horror as his eyes stared wide open across the room. Alexander stepped out in front of Vivian and checked the man’s pulse. He was dead as a rat.

“Ah, shit,” Alexander exclaimed. “You killed him, Viv!”

Vivian coiled, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. I wasn’t thinking.”

“Ah well. He’s killed, he’s killed. We’ll find info through the other suspects. It’s okay. Try not to use so much force or let your anger take over. You really went for it though,” Alexander spoke as his hand scratched the back of his head. He stood up and Vivian couldn’t help but continue to stare at the dead man.

“Let’s go see what the others are up to. We'll pick this up later."&

Apparently, Eliza had a mission she needed to fulfill and wanted to take Vivian along for the ride.

“Be careful, Eliza. She can pack quite the punch,” Alexander grinned and winked at Vivian before the two headed out. Vivian, unsure of where they were going or who they were dealing with, followed Eliza dutifully, being careful not to let emotions build up during the beginning of their mission.



@TheQueensGuard
 
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[Location] Old-Town New Angles Alleyway, Eidos
[Time][/COLOR] [/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=Trebuchet MS]12:12 A.M [/FONT] [SIZE=12px][FONT=Trebuchet MS][/FONT] [COLOR=rgb(230, 0, 145)][FONT=Trebuchet MS]"Arcadia."[/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=rgb(235, 107, 86)][FONT=Trebuchet MS] [/FONT][/COLOR] [FONT=Trebuchet MS] With the young lady's word's Lepton's eye twitched as all his worries were confirmed, that the man and the girl were being pursued by Arcadia, he didn't know for what reason Arcadia was chasing down the man, depending on the severity of his crime, whether it was murder or just existing, he could very well bring lots of trouble to Eidos. The best course of action was to just help them, it wasn't just an act of conscience, it was an act of logic. If he turned the duo away it was clear that the girl was incapable of taking care of an unconscious man, them being captured by Arcadia means potential of the girl selling out. The safety of the amateurish escape team is now very likely tied to his own. [/FONT] [COLOR=rgb(230, 0, 145)][FONT=Trebuchet MS] "I have no idea how he got the cuts. I just met him today, I don't even know his real name. They just called him 964. I call him Nine for short" [/FONT][/COLOR] [FONT=Trebuchet MS][/FONT] [COLOR=rgb(243, 121, 52)][FONT=Trebuchet MS]"Hmph, typical I guess."[/FONT][/COLOR] [FONT=Trebuchet MS] The elder doctor let out a disapproving comment, typical of the organization to do such a thing. Floating back to a time where his youthful sense of justice was still omnipresent in his life, he once fought against the practice, but Arcadia directors won't listen to scientists when it came to ethics, regardless of how many PhDs they have. [COLOR=rgb(230, 0, 145)]"Do you think he'll live Dr. Seamyar?"[/COLOR] Lepton glanced over at the girl, the man's injuries were quiet troubling, but most likely not life threatening as long as he isn't left out in the wilderness or something like that. From what he can see a lot of the blood caked on the man wasn't even his, his unconsciousness wasn't purely from blood lost either, it was a combination of fatigue and starvation. The wounds would do fine after they're stitched, but the broken ribs would need the man to settle down for awhile. The doctor stood up to the counter, Nine had a large build, he doubted that he and the girl can get him into another room without making those ribs worse. [/FONT] [COLOR=rgb(243, 121, 52)][FONT=Trebuchet MS]"Of course, from what I can see I doubt most of this blood is actually his."[/FONT][/COLOR] [FONT=Trebuchet MS] Opening the counter drawers Lepton pulled out some supply, the special air sanitation spray costed quiet a bit on the black market, but he didn't know if it would be appropriate to charge the girl extra for someone who's a stranger to her. It was a quick supply gathering, it was something common after all. He would address the ribs after the opened wounds are cleaned. Gloves, medical alcohol, painkillers, and finally a long white doctor's coat. On the coat's chest pocket small words and am emblem was sewed on. [/FONT] [FONT=Poiret One][/FONT][/SIZE] [SIZE=15px][FONT=Poiret One][Prof. L. Seamyar January Initiative][/FONT][/SIZE] [SIZE=12px][COLOR=rgb(243, 121, 52)][FONT=Trebuchet MS][/FONT][/COLOR] [FONT=Trebuchet MS][COLOR=rgb(243, 121, 52)]"There's a few big ones that needs to be stitched, dissolvable, really the last thing I want is for you two to come here again." [/COLOR]The doctor mumbled calmly as he began cleaning the larger wounds, removing the dirt around showed the arm wound more clearly. The wound was jagged, and deep into the tissue, seemingly connected to some veins. It certainly has something to do with Arcadia trackers, the only thing Lepton can think now is how thankful he is that this man had the common sense to remove it. [/FONT][/SIZE] [FONT=Trebuchet MS][SIZE=12px][COLOR=rgb(243, 121, 52)]"The broken ribs I can't do anything about, they aren't that bad so you can really only wait for them to heal."[/COLOR] He continued a bit half heatedly as he continued the process. [COLOR=rgb(243, 121, 52)]"I'll get something to easy the pain, but don't blame me if he dies from some unknown medical allergy."[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/Time]
 
New Angeles
Eidos
Ashley Coleman
12:28 PM
Ashley shifted uncomfortably in the chair as she watched the doctor at the mention of him dying. "Of course, I understand." She nodded, standing from the chair and took a step towards the door. "I'll be back doctor, I think I need some fresh air." Without waiting for a response, Ashley scooped her hoodie off the floor and headed out the door, checking either direction in the alleyway before taking a deep breath. She had to get payment, both for food and to pay Lepton.

It took roughly fifteen minutes for Ashley to reach the outside of her apartment, a walk that would normally take thirty minutes though thanks to the rooftops, it allowed Ashley to move relatively safely and quickly. Now getting inside her apartment would be another story. Around the corner of the apartment was the black van that Arcadia was using, no doubt housing the metal arm goon and his posse. Guessing from various TV shows and movies, Ashley figured they'd have probably one person set up watching the apartment with a sniper. Possibly another one or two people inside the building waiting for her. This wasn't going to be easy; but she had to get money for the doctor somehow. Taking a deep breath, she slipped on the hoodie and pulled the gas mask around her neck to cover her mouth.

Walking up the stairs was eerily quiet, as if the apartment was abandoned. Ashley was anxious, she knew Metal-Guy was somewhere in the building; waiting for her to spring the trap that inevitably was set in her building. She reached her floor, glancing down the hallway in either direction before slowly making her way to her door. As expected, someone had been there. The door was busted in, several piece of the door crumbled on the ground. Taking a step in, she glanced around; the kitchen and living room was ransacked. The blinds were pulled off the windows, laying torn on the floor. She could feel their eyes on her, and she thought back to her make-shift plan.
Lock the place down

She felt her powers channeling through her body as a dark purple barrier formed in front of the windows, a similar one forming at the door way. Each barrier was too dark too see through, granting her some privacy as she followed the second step of her plan.
Get some money

She made her way to her room, opening the door to another cluttered room. She heard pounding on the barrier blocking the door. "What the fuck is this shit." A voice echoed from the barrier, a second voice murmuring something angrily accompanied by another pound. The barrier would hold, Ashley knew that. She had to focus on getting the money. Grabbing her knocked over dresser, she lifted it up struggling with it before powering through and pushing it away from the closet. Sliding the closet open, it was a mess but not as bad as her room. Moving some clothes over, she found the cubby embedded in the floor and lifted it open. A safe sat in the hole, untouched by the guys who raided her house. Putting in the code, her brothers birthday, she let out a sigh of relief seeing the wad of cash rubber banded together in the safe. It wasn't too much, roughly six hundred, but it was all the cash she didn't have stored in the bank.
Grabbing the money, she quickly scrounged around the room for a bag. Finding one she put the money in it, tossed some clothes on top of it, and zipped the back. She heard more talking at the door but was unsure of what they said. She didn't care; now it was time to do the last part of her plan.

Get out


She had to focus, she extended a hand towards the floor and took a deep breath. She felt her power flowing from her finger tips, creating strings of energy that flowedto the palm of her hand, a ball of red light forming. Pounding on the door and fire escape barriers startled her, but she stayed focused. The red ball grew in size, roughly to the size of a tennis ball.
The door barrier was starting to fade, cracks forming in the center of it. With each hit, the cracks expanded more and more. She had to hurry.
The red ball was about the size of a volleyball in another few moments. Ashley licked her lips nervously, unsure if it would work.


She let the tension in the strings go, flinging the red ball forward like a slingshot. The ball struck the floor, expanding to about the size of a man-hole before exploding the floor into a mess of debris. When the smoke cleared and debris settle, a sizable hole was left in it's wake. The hole was crispy on the edges, charred from the heat of the ball. Through the hole was the apartment below hers, the owners luckily out for the day. Smiling beneath her mask, she tossed the bag down as the barrier of the door shattered to pieces. The happiness draining from her face, she hopped down the hole as the first soldier entered the living room, spotting her disappear below.
"She's below us!"
The voice called out, his foot steps rushing to the hole. Blocking the hole with more energy, she snatched up the bag and headed towards the front door and through it open. Above her the steps of more soldiers echoed towards the stairs. She was hoping to sneak out below them if the barrier held, but since it was broken she had to alter the plan. Slamming the door shut, she ran towards the window.


A ball of energy formed around Ashley, protecting her from the glass as she fell one more floor to the ground. The ball cracked after the drop as she landed on a parked car, crushing the roof of it. Rolling off, she ran down the street. A gun shot behind her startled her, but to her luck the bullet slammed into the wall behind her. Above on the fire escape, a man fired an assault rifle down at her. She disappeared around the corner, but not before a bullet hit her arm. She cursed, and gripped her arm tightly. Tears weld up in her eyes, but the adrenaline was helping her deal with the pain. She booked it down the road, yelling forming behind her. She took a deep breath, thinking out how she'd loose them. The rev of a car engine startled her as the black van came barreling towards her. Skidding to a stop, she froze with fear.
She saw the man behind the wheel; the guy with the metal arms. She gripped her hand closed angrily, glaring at the van. It wasn't too far away now, and didn't show signs of stopping. Raising a hand, a beam of neon light formed beneath the side of the van, knocking it into the air.


Twisting in the air, it rolled a few feet to the side of Ashley. Not wanting to waste time, she kept going down the street. She turned down an alleyway, cutting through it before reaching a manhole. She wasn't too experienced with traveling in the sewers, and had only done it on occasion. Regardless, any place was better than here.

~~1:04PM~~
@Cresion Breezes @StareNation
Rather it was luck or the soldiers stupidity, she made it out of her apartment. It took twelve minutes of her wandering through the sewers before finding a way out of the sewer, four of those minutes she took to wrap a scrap of her shirt around her bleeding arm. The bullet grazed her arm, which was a good thing, but the wound didn't stop bleeding. She took her mask off and took a breath of fresh air once out of the sewers and headed towards the road. So far no signs of Arcadia or Peacekeepers. Ashley headed towards a fast-food joint, Burger One, and quickly grabbed some food. Several people were looking at her funny, and she new why. She looked like hell, and smelt worse. After paying for the burgers, she made her way to the roof tops once again, careful to make sure no one saw her.

It took fifteen minutes to find where she was, and another five to find Eidos. She smiled happily to herself, murmuring aloud "I can't wait to rest." She glanced at her watch, 1:34. Pushing the door open, she waved the bag of food in the air saying. "Nine! Doctor Lepton! I'm back with lunch."

New Angeles
Old Warehouse
Detective Anderson
1:13 PM

@Huntress
Vector gave Alex a smile and a nod. "Agreed." He raised a metallic hand to showcase his cybernetics. "I got these beauties two years ago in Lagos thanks to Furor. Guess you could say I'm just eager to settle the score."
Foot steps approached the two as they talked, at first Vector didn't notice them but he picked up on them. He glanced towards the sound, the cadet walking with a clipboard. "Detective Anderson." He glanced at the prisoner, disregarded her and brought his attention back to Vector. "The Arcadia agents are here, is she going with them?"
Vector frowned but nodded. "Already here? Damn they work fast. Yeah, she's not our problem. Send them our way." He looked back at Alex. "Looks like this is goodbye for now Alex." He took a step out of the car and gave her a two-finger salute. "Be on your best behavior."

The two Arcadia agents walked up behind him, ignoring the detective and calling to Alex, one of the agents said. "Ms. Morris, please step out of the car."

New Angeles
North Arcadia Confinement Center
Elijah Brandt

10:00 AM, July 30th
Elijah had spent the majority of the following day in and out of consciousness, the blow Emilia's friend dealt him being relatively efficient. A lesser man would've died, but his healing factor kept him going. He awoke early in the morning in the medical portion of the Arcadia building. A pair of cuffs were around his wrists and ankles, with a collar around his neck. It hadn't been comfortable, but at least he wasn't in a cell.

It wasn't until nine thirty that he was escorted from the hospital bed to an interrogation room, where he waited patiently for another thirty minutes before something finally happened. The door opened, the sound of heels clicking on the tile hallway outside echoed into the room. Elijah glanced up at the door, yawning as Director Sydney Pearl walked into the room. The door closed behind her and an eerie silence hung in the room. She placed a cup of coffee on the table, slipped off her jacket, and took a seat in a chair across from Elijah. She took a drink from the coffee, her eyes fixed on the mercenary.
"So you gonna say anything or are we having a staring contest director?"
Elijah broke the silence, the half-ass joke hanging in the air. "I don't get it. Why did you come so compliantly?" She finally spoke, her eyes unmoving on the man. "I put up a fight. Your agents just got the better of me." She shook her head. "No, you didn't fire a shot despite having a loaded pistol on you. Emilia was perfectly fine after sparing with you. Every other agent that we've sent after you winded up dead or with broken bones." Elijah shrugged and smiled. "Maybe I'm getting softer the older I get?"
The director sighed, it was clear she wasn't going to be getting any information out of him about this. "Fine. Tell us about the bombing. Are you working with Furor?" The question surprised Elijah, who sat back in his chair. "Furor? Why the hell would I work with those nut jobs." Sydney took another drink of her coffee. "Peacekeepers traced the origin of the bomb to a Furor compound. We just don't know why you'd plant a bomb for them."

Elijah shook his head. "I didn't bring it with me. Some Shade assassin did." This peaked the directors interest. "Shade?" Elijah nodded. "Do you think they're working with Furor?" Elijah shrugged in response. Sydney frowned, unsure of what to make of the situation. "I'll ask you this once Brandt; will you comply with Arcadia and join our ranks?" Elijah didn't answer. "Fine. You'll be held here for a few days before being shipped off to a holding facility up in Washington. Enjoy your life behind bars Reaper."

New Angeles
Downtown Loft
Vector Anderson
9:00 AM, July 30th
@Pupperr
The beeping of his alarm clock woke Vector up, who groggily rolled over to switch it off. He sat at the edge of his bed, taking a look at the morning hours of the downtown part of the city. It was such a dramatic contrast to the slums he spent his day in yesterday. Traffic honked below, people walked the streets heading towards their jobs, and a helicopter flew past his window. He yawned and set off to do his morning routine.
Take a shower, stretch, get breakfast and set out to work. The day before, once he wrapped up at the crime scene he had to head back to the Peacekeeper station in the Cloud District to fill out paperwork, which took up the majority of his afternoon.
To his surprise, he was met with applause at the office. The majority of the time most officers looked at Vector with envy or distrust. He was younger than most of them, but held a high position in the company. It wasn't a secret most people thought he couldn't be good at his job; but yesterday proved it. He saved the girl and shut down a Furor operation, all by himself. He was invited to go with a few of the officers out to a bar in Chinatown the next day, which Vector happily accepted.
That wasn't the only surprise he received that day. Riley called him when he was in the middle of his paperwork and after a brief chat, Vector had a date to take with him to Chinatown. Overall it was a pretty good day.

He left his loft, taking the elevator to the bottom floor of his apartment complex, a nice high-rise building in the central part of New Angeles. The Peacekeepers paid him well enough to afford a penthouse, but his loft was perfect for him. Not too big, a good open space, and a good view of the city. Waiting outside the Highrise was his chauffeur, ready to take him to the Peacekeeper office once again. Climbing into the back of the vehicle, Vector checked his watch. 10:04. Not bad, but he was four minutes past his normal time. He pulled out his phone, hovering over "Riley" before clicking on it. He sent her a quick text.

Morning Riley, we still on for tonight?
 
alexandra morris
Omu Upied

DATE: July 29th
LOCATION: New Angeles
MENTIONS: Vector
INTERACTIONS: Vector - @TheQueensGuard
——————————————————————————————
1:14 PM
New Angeles - Bordering territory between the slums and docks​

Alexandra watched Vector as he showcased his cybernetics. Some people enjoyed the concept of being able to better their bodies with shiny things. The young detective seemed satisfied with the new additions, although it probably took some getting used to, or so Alex assumed. Surely the positives outweighed the negatives for him, Alexandra simply wasn’t a fan of the whole cybernetics thing. Not that she was necessarily a fan of having abilities herself either, they were definitely useful in what she had chosen to do, she couldn’t deny that.

Alex had also spent a good amount of time thinking about how her life would have been if she could’ve picked a totally different path, maybe not even have any powers. She had lived a normal life for just a little bit, and in that time she had been content. She was aware that life could take drastic turns but she hadn’t expected her world to be flipped around and almost shattered. Clenching her jaw she sighed and looked away from the detective with a nod. Now wasn’t the time to linger on such thoughts. She would be in a cell shortly she could come back to all those things when she would have nothing better to do. Smirking she let out a small chuckle mostly directed to herself and nodded. “I too have a score to settle with Furor.” She responded to the man and looked just passed him as a young lad approached.

A soft smile spread across her lips as she nodded. She hadn’t spoken to the detective much, but there was something about him she liked. His responses and his body language seemed to indicate that anything he said was true. Then again Alexandra had been wrong in the past, but regardless of right or wrong she always knew to trust her gut. Clenching her jaw she sighed. “Goodbye Detective Anderson. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you around soon.” She responded as she watched him carry on. “Only the best for Arcadia!” Alex called out in an even more exaggerated British accent, perhaps a hint of an attempt to sound royal or regal, in a satirical way. She smiled to herself and leaned back in her seat with a sigh as she waited for them to come pick her up.

Looking to her left, Hazel eyes narrowed slightly; it wasn’t in anger, intrigue or fear, it was simply because of the brightness outside. Her eyes flicked back to the peacekeeper that had been in the van. “Thanks for the good talks Landon.” She nodded before stepping out of the vehicle and approaching the two agents. “Here I am.” She held her head high, a subtle smirk on her lips. “Will you two by any chance be more talkative and welcoming than them?” She asked as she followed the agents. Being met with silence Alexandra sighed slightly and carried on.

Rounding a corner with the guards ahead of her she spotted the Arcadia vehicle and scoffed slightly. Clenching her jaw she followed the agent that walked towards the back and opened the door for her. Hopping in she was joined by the young man as the other sat in the front. Just like with Landon, the peacekeeper, the two sat across from eachother, face to face. Leaning back in her seat Alexandra looked left then right, her attention remaining on what was on the other side of the grated window.

“I came to the scene in a personal vehicle” she started before turning her attention to the agent across from her “is there any way you can guarantee that it’ll be returned to me in one piece and everything intact?” She raised a brow. Alex was aware that this would compromise her personal mode of transportation, but should she somehow keep this job after this whole ordeal, she would find a new means of transportation, perhaps D.E.E.R would even provide it for her. The agent remained silent, Alex turned her attention back to the window.

“What is your position within Furor?” The young man finally spoke.

Alex’s eyes grew wide as she glared out the window, jaw set and clenched tightly. Her exhale was long and drawn out; hazel irises turned towards the agent, her whole head following just a moment after. Sliding herself across the seat she came face to face with the agent. Elbows pressed into her knees as she held her head high and glared at the man. “My position within Furor is non-existent.” Her voice was low and monotone, she was visibly offended at this agents assumption that she was a terrorist.

“Why were you at the scene without clearance? What is your mission with D.E.E.R?” The young man continued with his questions.

“It’s classified information that you’ll never be cleared to look at.” There was one final glare from Alexandra before she slid back to the right side of the vehicle and looked out the window once again. She wondered where they would take her and just for how long it might be, one thing was for sure, she was not looking forward to hearing from Jacob after this whole ordeal.
 
New Angeles; Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
11:23PM July 29th, 2030.
Riley “Jinx” Arondóttir

Riley’s footsteps echoed through the empty room as she approached an ordinary brown door. The woman lightly knocked on the door three times before turning the handle and entering. Once she stepped through the doorway, she nodded her head in respect before continuing any further. Riley approached the center of the room masked in shadow and stopped before the wooden desk against the far wall. There was a figure sitting with their back toward Riley and another figure standing next to the one sitting. ”Jinx reporting in.”

The standing figure took a small step forward, revealing a cocked eyebrow staring back at Riley. ”My, my, Riley. You’re being rather formal, since when did you learn any manners?”

Riley’s eyes panned from the figure in the chair over to the figure now mocking her. She grinned seductively at him. ”Oh Sebastian, I’ve always had manners. I just know that you preferred when I didn’t. Riley licked her lips lightly while biting the corner of her bottom one as she imagined the man in her bed once more. It was a long lost memory at this point, Sebastian was not the man she remembered; but she was no longer the woman she used to be either.

”Now then you two, either get over with it and jump each other, or stop flirting with each other every time you’re in the same room.” Crow announced as she turned in her chair to face Riley and Sebastian. ”It is unlike you to formally check in, so what it is it that you’ve happened upon Jinx?”

”Ah, I only wish Crow.” Riley responded as she winked at Sebastian. ”I’m here to let you know I’ve thwarted the Peacekeeper’s tail from Shade being part of the bombing, however; that squirrelly weapons specialists that Vex uses to supply her little minions with goodies has been leaking information to them. I erased any memory he had of us so he shouldn’t be a problem anymore, but… I had to keep him alive to avoid raising anymore suspicion. Our good friend Vex is going to have to find herself a new dealer and she should probably vet the damn guy beforehand.”

”And there’s more. I gave Furor to the Peacekeeper’s to tail in our place but I happened across a detective that I think could be useful to us, should I have the opportunity to poke about in his head. He’s a young one, but tragically skilled beyond his years, and ultimately not respected amongst his peers. I have a feeling there is a resentment somewhere there that we could exploit.”

”You want to make him a mole?” Sebastian asked, curiousity tickling his voice. ’Is that wise, Riley? For that to work you would have to spend a rather significant amount of time with the detective to pull off what you’re suggesting. If he gets too close to you before you can turn him… he could find out something about you that we can’t risk.”

Riley smirked, placing a rather ‘matter of fact’ hand on her hip as her weight shifted over to one foot. ”If that’s that case, I’ll just have to kill him.. But I think the potential benefits outweigh the potential risk.”

Crow stood from her seat and walked around the desk. She planted her behind on the desk, one hand on the furniture’s surface to stabilize her and the other in a quizzical gesture on her chin as she contemplated the information. With a sigh she pushed off the desk and walked toward Riley. ”I understand why you’re checking in now. You want permission because it could end with the death of an up and coming detective, which could draw all kinds of unwanted attention. But I agree with you, Riley. The benefits outweigh the risk. Do what you have to, but kill him inconspicuously if needed. And don’t wait too long to do it either if it’s going that direction.”

”You and I both know inconspicuous murder is my middle name, Crow.” The woman chucked lightly before nodding her head in respect once more and turning on her heel to leave. ”One more thing, Riley. Don’t fall in love with the Peacekeeper.”

Riley stopped in her tracks for moment before continuing and exiting the room. ”Understood.”

Sebastian turned to Crow with a questioning face. ”Don’t fall in love with the Peacekeeper?" Crow gave Sebastian a look that said he should already know what she meant before returning to her seat at the desk. ”You know better than me, Sebastian… Being in someone’s mind is a level of intimacy you can’t achieve through physical touch. It can be intoxicating.. But we have something else to worry about. I need you to visit with Vex and tell her about the arms dealer. And warn her not to mess up again…”

New Angeles; Riley’s Apartment
10:04AM July 30th, 2030.
Riley “Jinx” Arondóttir

The smell of coffee filled the apartment. For being in the slums, the place wasn’t entirely disgusting. There were parts that were run down, sure, but overall it was in decent condition. It was one giant room; the bedroom, living room, and kitchen, were in the same space across 800 square feet or so. The bathroom was the only room that was hidden behind a door.

Riley stood at the window, coffee cup warming her hand when her phone vibrated in the pocket of her housecoat. She pulled out her phone to find a message from the detective confirming their plans for the evening. She grinned at the message, took a small sip of her coffee and wrote him back.

Yes, absolutely! :) What time should I meet you?

Riley popped the cell phone back into her pocket and crossed the room to a closet by her bed. She put the coffee cup down on the nightstand and opened the wardrobe to reveal a collection of mute coloured clothing. She ran her hand along the clothes in a quick sweeping motion before reaching for a cream coloured deep v-neck strappy tank with lace embellishments accenting the breast line. Riley threw the tank on the bed behind her before pulling out a pair of distressed dark wash crop length jeans and black stiletto heels. She turned to her bed to examine the outfit and grinned. ”This should do it. If dear old detective can keep his hands off me after this, he must bat for the other team.”

The woman picked her coffee up again, taking a long sip of it and letting the liquid warm her body. She glanced over to the clock on the wall and made a mental note to invite the Furor scum to their soirée before going to meet Vector. It was still early enough for her to make a stop at Eidos and see if the old man could upgrade her eye. Riley finished her coffee and put her regular attire on before exiting her loft.
 
Convict #964
----- July 29th - 10:50am – 2:00pm -----
Location: New Angeles - Eidos Medical Clinic

Interactions - Ashley Coleman @TheQueensGuard , Lepton Seamyar @Cresion Breezes

As far as Ford was concerned, the following hours were spent thrown deep back into his past with glimpses of deep red African soil, the hums of his mother and village women whilst the undeniable sound of his father’s loud chuckle lingered harmoniously as though it were there simply to comfort him.

It only lasted a brief moment before a hand grabbed at his arm and he was pulled up from the ground by Levan who was sporting a broad grin and dirt covered face.
“Trust you to be sleeping on the job,” Levan shouted amidst a stream of gunfire and explosion in the distance. Ford glanced down to see himself in his uniform and with some confusion glanced back up to his mate who was busily slapping him on the back and shoving Ford’s rifle back into his hands.
“Well c’mon slacker!” Levan hollered as he jogged back towards the compound where the rest of the unit were moving towards their intended target. Hadn’t he been somewhere else? As he jogged back with Levan his inner conscience fought himself, reminding him that this wasn’t where he was meant to be.

Everything seemed somewhat off until the scene before him seemed to fade once more, the spacious scene now shrinking into the confines of a cell he had known all too well. His head grew cloudy as he felt the familiar wave of nauseousness flood his form and the voice which sent a shiver down his spine as it crackled through the intercom.
“Welcome back 964, I trust you understand the consequences of not following Arcadia directives.”
His back felt the cold steel table beneath him, his hands balling into fists as he pulled at the restraints which held him against the table. Not again he had thought, he’d had enough of this shit to last a lifetime. The door to the right of him slid back as a trio of white coated laboratory personnel walked into the room as though they were performing a calculated dance. He continued to struggle as they drew closer, his breathing shortening as he twisted and writhed to break free.

***

A white coat. As his eyelids fought their way open he caught the first few seconds of reality where one of those blasted white coats floated near him. He groaned as he struggled in the chair, half conscious as he came to. This was where he had meant to be, this was real. But what had happened since he had approached the outside of the coffee shop with Neon?

As he gained a clear view of the room it was clear he was still in Eidos though the presence of the man beside him did nothing to calm him as his breath hitched in his throat. He hadn’t noticed Ashley nor anything other than the man and in reaction he planted his feet flat to the ground, pushing the chair backwards until it slammed into the table near it. His chest crunched with pain as he moved, evident by the jarring movements of him as he reached out to grab the table to hold himself. The owner of the white coat opposite him sported glasses, the kind you would expect your grandfather to use when he read the daily newspaper. He looked old though Ford couldn’t have cared what he looked like when he was near him in a laboratory uniform. With limited option of escaping nimbly, he focused on what was closest to him, the chairs around the table beginning to clatter against the ground as one tilted upwards, suddenly thrown towards the man as though it were weightless. Pulling himself up using the table as a counter he found himself backed against the wall which though placed him in a cornered position, was something he could fight his way out of if it came to it.
 
Outside New Angeles
Western Arcadia Base
Agent Cutlass and Director Pearl
July 29th/ 6:30 PM

The phone call that interrupted Director Pearls meeting with agents Emilia and Naomi was from the Peacekeepers. During their investigations into the apartment bombing, they stumbled upon a D.E.E.R agent intruding into the crime scene. This agent however wasn't authorized, which led to her having to contact D.E.E.R officials and fill out some paperwork. Overall the whole situation was annoying but Jacob was clear that D.E.E.R had to follow protocol in the states, and if those rules are broken they had to lock the agent up for the night.

During the paperwork, she was interrupted by another call; this one involving the convict and the girl that aided in his escape. Cutlass and his team staked out the girls apartment, a cheap place in the Slums. Of course the girl escaped, shots were fired and their van crashed. The attention drew the attention of both Peacekeepers and the media. Out of time and lies, Pearl gave the order to go public with the information.
Now in a rather sour mood, Cutlass was called into her office.

~~~

Cutlass nervously shifted in his chair, his eyes not meeting the gaze of the Director. She tapped the desk with her metallic fingers in a rhythmic fashion, the tapping the only thing breaking the silence. Despite the woman not having any powers, she had an intimidating presence. Finally the tapping stopped, and she spoke.
"I asked you to do it quietly Aldrin. Your job was to track down and capture a man who survived a car crash and a teenage Starbucks barista, but instead you gave me a dead soldier, a dead civilian, a crashed car, and a whole lot of questions I have to find answers too."
"I..."
The agent started to talk, but quieted down.
"When I heard the girl managed to evade Brig Task Force, I was going to shut you down. Toss you right back into a cell, and shut down the convict program. Luckily you have friends around here Cutlass, or we wouldn't be talking right now."
She paused and took a sip of coffee.
"You have one last shot. You have until this time next week to find 964. If you don't, I'm tossing you in maximum. Get out of here."
The extranormal nervously licked his lips and nodded.
"Thank you ma'am, I'll get it done."
Unknown
Hardwire

July 29th/ 2-4:00 PM
The orders from Purifier were clear, bring in the little girl alive. Hardwire spent the next two hours formulating a plan, watching the families movements, and checking their schedule. The best time the team would be able to attack would be on the road when they were away from home. It would leave her parents less prepared to defend the girl, plus Arcadia always kept additional soldiers stationed near the home, though out of sight.
He contacted Lucian first, the boy being the only one not currently near the city. Though Lucian wasn’t officially a member of Furor, he had worked with the group in the past. Purifier had respect for him and his abilities. He was already flying in, so a quick message sent to his phone with the address to the warehouse was simple enough. His job was crucial in this task. If this girl was as powerful as Purifier thought, they’d need someone to turn off her abilities.
Hardwire enjoyed him well enough. They held a similar viewpoint on humans; Lucian saw extranormals as the next step in evolution. Hardwire believed computers and robotics would be the next step in evolution, himself being the first of a new age.

January was no doubt heading back towards the main base, located just outside the city towards the East. Purifier could handle giving her the message. She would be the one to head the mission. Not only would she be the one to deal with the parents, but if Lucian would fail she could always put the girl in a brain-dead state. Hardwire was confident in her abilities, even if Purifier was unsure.

Finally Evelyne had to be notified. She was just in the other room, which required Hardwire to disconnect from his station. Coming out of his digital world and into reality, the robotic silently sat motionless. He felt as if he was coming off the best drug of his life. His mind had been racing with the endless information of the internet, but slowly adjusted back to it's normal state. A metal hand gripped the arm of the chair before the cyborg pushed himself out of it and turned his head towards the sound of Evelyne working in the other room. His metal legs clanked against the floor, his joints rigid and locking up every other step. He needed to be in his new body, this one was growing older by the day.

He leaned against the doorway, the robotic eyes of his observing the woman as she worked.
"Evelyne."
He said plainly, the voice roughly growling out as if it came from a broken speaker.
"How goes the progress?"

Hunched over a large chunk of plaster, Evelyne’s head bobbed about as she worked with her mind a world away from the present, intricately scraping fine layers of the material away as she sculpted the mold. The messy bun of auburn hair jerked backwards as Hardwire spoke and she smiled at him while she placed the small scalpel down on the workbench in between the bits of plaster and electronics. Pulling her earbuds from her ears she relaxed back on her stool as her long legs lowered from the rail to the ground Evelyne motioned to the skeletal structure behind her in the center of the workroom.

“Tracking well actually, I finished the sensory tacks this morning on the inner frame and I am a day away from creating the humanoid skin.” She updated him in a light tone. She was excited to show him no matter his reaction, her work something she took a great deal of pride in. her childhood friends would no doubt have gawked at her but this was Eve in her element. She pushed the stool backwards and walked across the room to another bench, picking up a small control module before turning to view the skeletal frame.

“It’s quite remarkable when you think about it, these extra senses I’ve put in,” she began as her fingers flicked switches on the module which in turn sent signals to the frame which came to life before them both.

“The trick is paying attention to the finer detail, you see if I was walking down the street and I pointed something out to you, my movements would be smooth, not jagged as most robotics move. So rather than putting sensors in the basic places for your traditional forward, back and side to side movements, I’ve added points to make sure the robotic moves like you would see in a human’s fine motor skill movement.” She explained to him as she demonstrated with the control module, guiding the skeletons right foot to lift and flex, the individual toes moving fluidly before she returned the foot to the ground. Flicking the control module off she placed it on the bench behind her and moved back to the plaster.
“Now I’m making you a face and skin with a new type of epidermal material. I’ve got a good deal on the raw materials so it shouldn’t be too hard to knock it out.” She told Hardwire as her smile grew. “you’ll be able to get pretty much anywhere with this by the time I’m finished.”

Hardwire slowly followed his companion with his eyes, listening eagerly. He felt a bit of content hearing he was so close to his new body. He gazed upon the partially done body, his eyes unbreaking from it before adding a quick “Thank you.” He moved awkwardly away from the door, his joints creaking slightly as he made his way towards the skeletal frame. . “As much as I’d rather keep you here to finish your work, Purifier has other plans. You’ll be accompanying January and Lucian tomorrow on a task; the capture of an extranormal girl. Despite being young, Purifier believes her abilities will be exceptional.” He paused for a moment, lost in thought. “I picture our attention would be better spent elsewhere, but he is persistent.”

New Angeles
Downtown
July 29th, 7:02 PM
The streets were crowded and bustling, traffic was jammed as many were out and about in the city of lights. On the sides of buildings and on electronic billboards a sudden Breaking News appeared in a bright red font, before switching over towards Henry Laniwasp the evening newscaster.
"In shocking news today, Arcadia announced two fugitives are on the run within the city. Keenan Ford, a former U.S soldier and extranormal, was in custody after refusing to cooperate with Arcadia officials." An image flashed beside the newscaster, a mug shot of Ford holding the numbers 964. A list displayed beside him labeling him as an extranormal capable of mental powers and extremely dangerous.
"He was being transported to a prison, when he caused the convoy to crash killing several Arcadia soldiers."
A new image appeared, this one of a crashed Arcadia convoy truck.
"Afterwards he made his way into the city, where he was nearly captured by Arcadia once again before flying with the help of an accomplice. Ashley Coleman is a young extranormal that helped the man avoid custody."
A picture of the girl appeared beside the newscaster, pulled from social media.
"We're unsure of a motive, but both are considered dangerous. If you have any knowledge of the whereabouts of either of these too contact the authorities immediately. It's believed that the pair is also responsible for the death of Jeremiah James, a father down on his luck living on the streets."
A picture of Mr.James replaced the photo of the girl as the newscaster talked.
"Once again we advise caution and for you to not approach either of them."
 
New Angeles; Cloud District
9:42AM July 30th, 2030.
Maxine Clermont

”It was a fall day. The perfect fall day. Or almost perfect… Mama said that we could go to the park as long as I ate all of my vegetables. She made roast that night with string green beans and I hated green beans… But I wanted to play at the park so I ate all of them…. I wish I didn’t eat all of them….”

Pen met paper as a few notes were scribbled down before closing the book and two large hands clasped themselves together. One leg folded over the other before a clear of the throat made room for a voice.

"Why would you wish that?"

”Because then we wouldn’t have gone to the park… and then… then it wouldn’t have happened and I wouldn’t be… I wouldn’t be a freak.” The small voice stumbled along each word.

”It’s been six years since then. We have been talking for four. What has stirred up this old feeling of yours?"

Two thumbs fought with each other in any attempt to distract themselves. A small shake of the head fought back tears daring to escape. ”They’re all scared of me. No one wants to be my friend… no one wants anything to do with me!” Sad eyes shot up and stared at the woman sitting in the big red chair. ”It’s not an old feeling! It’s always been there… it’s always going to be there as long as I’m this… this.. Thing. This monster! A mutant… If it wasn’t for that day… I wouldn’t… I would just be normal.”

The leg unfolded and two feet planted firmly on the ground. Hands met the top of the knees and a small sigh escaped the chest. An arm reached for a box of tissue on a small circular wooden table next to the big red chair and placed the box on the larger square table with a glass top in front of the blue suede couch.

”Maxine. You are what you are and what happened that day on the playground wouldn’t have changed that. What about your father, when you look at him, do you see a mutant?”

The blonde head fell, chin to neck, eyes fixed on her shoes against the plush grey carpet. She didn’t bother to reach for the tissue sitting on the table. Her mind wandered back to that perfect fall day and to the ice figure wrapping himself around her. After that there was nothing but darkness. She shook her head in response to the question, her thumbs busy battling each other again.
”Tell me this Maxine, what do you see when you look at your father?”

”His smile looking back at me… no matter what I do. Even when I’m getting in trouble, he’s always smiling. One day I went into his workshop to find something and there was a beautiful painting on the easel. He was working on it for days and days and days… It was a lake with the moon on it and there were these beautiful flowers by the water, right on the edge. It was so perfect it was like I was there! But I … I bumped the painting and it knocked over a bunch of cans of paint, spilling and smearing blues and blacks and greens.. It was ruined. But Papa didn’t get mad, he looked at it and said it was better that way. I remember asking him why he didn’t get mad at me, why he didn’t just yell at me. I got so upset I… I… I set it on fire. I remember him coming to my room that night, sitting on the edge of my bed, and reaching for my hand. His hand was so cold though and all he said was ‘my little Max, one day you’ll understand the fire within your heart and when you do, you’ll be the brightest star.”

Maxine lifted her head and looked at the woman sitting in the big red chair again. Her green eyes trembled with tears. ”What did he mean by that!? Understand the fire within my heart and become the brightest star? What does that even mean!?”

The woman smiled gently at Maxine and crossed one leg over the other again as she leaned back in the chair. An elbow rested on the arm of the chair as she allowed her head to rest on the backside of her hand delicately. ”I wouldn’t know Maxine, you would have to ask your Father, but if I had to guess I would guess it has to do with the potential you have that we have been talking about all of this time.”

”That’s what Mama says. She’s always telling me I was born for something great and that one day I’ll see it too. And I know Mama and Papa have worked so hard since that day to help me… and I have learned a lot.. But sometimes, sometimes I just want to be normal. But I also can’t let them down. Mama and Papa always say I should be proud of what I am but I have no reason to be. What do people like me do?” Maxine wiped her eyes and sniffled. Her head raced with so many unanswered questions and thoughts. Talking to Dr. Kingston sometimes helped and sometimes it left her feeling more lost. Today she felt more lost.

”People like you live just like any other person.” The woman’s smile faded away as she noticed the time on the clock against the far wall. ”Unfortunately Maxine, that is all the time we have for today. I’ll see you again next week, OK?”

Maxine looked at Dr. Kingston and forced a weak smile. She stood from the couch, thanked the woman, and exited the office. Did people like her really live like other people? She stepped into the waiting room to find her parents greeting her with a smile. As always, she returned their welcome but looked around at the other clients waiting to see Dr.Kingston and wondered. What does normal mean?

New Angeles; Cloud District
12:02PM July 30th, 2030.
Maxine Clermont

It had become tradition to go for lunch after her therapist appointment. They usually went to a small hole in the wall in the middle of the Cloud District. From the outside you wouldn’t expect it to make the finest French onion soup but it was to die for. Today, however, the sun was out and they decided to have lunch in the park.

The car drove along free from words, the only noise from the sound of the radio. Maxine leaned her head against the window as she stared at the passing buildings and people. She couldn’t shake what the Doctor had said to her or the questions she wanted to ask. Born for something great. The brightest star. Fire within the heart. People like me live just like any other person…

Is that really true?
 
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[Outside New Angles]
[30,000ft above sea level]

[July 30th, 9:30 A.M.]

“Good morning passengers, this is your captain speaking. We will be arriving at New Angles, Chloe William International Airport very shortly. We advise you to fasten your seatbelts as well as fill out your custom declaration forms at this moment.”

Dim fluorescent lights brightened up a bit as the plane’s engines roared, the people stayed silent, occasionally a child’s cry came from a chamber down. Lucian opened his eyes slowly well after the announcement was over, air turbulence was rough as always regardless of what class you’re riding. The young man yawned and tried to comb down the platinum blond locks that hung slightly messily in front of his eyes as he dozed off on the flight. Right before being interrupted by a few buzzes from his scrunched up coat pocket, he didn’t check one of the few important messages he gets, and the notification comes back to haunt him every few hours.

“Of course it’s that pile of scrap metal.” Lucian mumbled, a bit annoyed from being woken up suddenly. After all beings of flesh and blood needed their beauty sleep to look pretty and shiny. Hardwire, or good old Travis as Lucian likes to call him, had always confused him. Back during the Calendar Initiative he didn’t think much about the man, but then again he didn’t think much at all when he was young. Now he didn’t know what to think about the man, if you can even still call him a man. It was a mixed feeling of part respect but part absurdity, though most of Lucian just believe that the human named Travis was insane to begin with. Hardwire was strange, but he always gave Lucian the ability to re-evaluate his own sanity, and to reassure himself that he was still perfectly sane compared to that bag of nuts and bolts, and just for that he was glad they could work together sometimes.

The bright screen was painful to look at after hours in the dark, but the message was clear enough despite it being only a line of address.

“Come on, won’t even let me do a bit of sightseeing after so long.” But in reality Lucian had little to no curiosity about the sights of New Angles, the city’s streets had too many memories that still blistered his mind. He had returned for exactly that reason, to put those things to rest.

“Ladies and gentlemen we would be commencing landing process right now, staff please take position.”

[New Angles]
[Cloud District - Chloe Williams International Airport]
[July 30th, 11:10 A.M.]


The large brightly lit building was crowded with people, most of them dressed in formal black grey tones with drones and robotic assistants carrying some large baggage behind them, or young men and women with their varsity jackets and suitcases covered in graffiti or colorful stickers. Lucian didn’t stand out much in the porcelain white neo futuristic fortress that is Chloe Willams Airport, his long white coat and pants didn’t catch nearly as much attention as it does anywhere else. He was carrying one small suitcase, a simple metallic white color. As the young man walked out of the automatic glass doors of the airport he shoved a small leathery book back into his coat pocket, the words “CANADA” and “PASSEPORT” printed upon it. A few drones hovered along while displaying “WELCOME TO NEW ANGLES” on their LED screens.

Passing a trash can he tossed in a piece of paper, “United States of America Border Custom Declaration Form”, it was neatly filled with personal information, but one probably wouldn’t find anybody if they tried to track down someone with those lines, at the very bottom a check mark was beside the line “Nothing to declare”. As much sarcasm and back-handed compliments he had for Travis, Lucian couldn’t deny that his abilities were quite useful in this city clustered with silicon and transistors. If it wasn’t for him Arcadia probably already knows about his arrival through the airport’s records, despite part of him wanting to let Arcadia know about his presence. Although he did wish Arcadia updated his picture, even from a stylistic stand point his 18 year old self really wasn’t the one he wanted to present to anyone.

The metallic case made some klank and klinking sounds as Lucian walked along the airport’s pick up area, but the noise was drowned out by the sound of cars, people’s mummers and robotic voices of drone guides, before finally falling into still silence as its owner halted an airport shuttle.

The view of the Cloud District from a car window was like watching the start of a cheese drama film, the peacefulness was unusual to someone who’s been crawling through chaos for years. The car paused a bit near a park, another car was waiting for the red light as well. Lucian halfheartedly glanced out the window, he could see a young girl with blond hair leaning against the car window, seemingly lost in thought. For a moment he wondered what kids raised in this ivory tower of a district can be worrisome about, but soon decided it was probably a world that he has never experienced.

“S’cuse me, sir?”

The slightly hoarse voice of the aging shuttle driver pulled Lucian back from the distant world on the other side of the window.

“You got the address now?”

Vaguely remembering that he simple told the driver to go South as he wasn’t sure if these Cloud District Taxis went into the slums or not, Lucian pulled up the message displayed on his phone and flashed it at the driver.

“You’re going down into that area?” The driver bursted out into a hearty laugh after. “Haha! Couldn’t tell you were someone who had business in those places.”

“Really? Perhaps I should be taking that as a compliment?” Lucian chuckled lightly as he looked at the driver, replying casually.

“Of course! Never thought a kid in a fancy suit like you would have anything to do down there, all I’ve seen are some rough street rats. You look like you’d be in some big meeting downtown.”

“My my, guess that really is a compliment then. What if I tell you that I am going to be in a big meeting soon? It’s just isn’t with people you’d expect.” Leaning back in his seat Lucian jokingly replied, without much of a care as the scenery in the window zipped passed, the sleek shiny buildings of the Cloud District soon giving away to run down, rusty shacks of the slum areas.

“What? You with a mafia or something?” The driver laughed again as the vehicle came to a stop beside a street near a courtyard filled with rows upon rows of warehouses. “Meddling with those people at your age, you must be either dumb, desperate,” Lucian raised an eyebrow at the driver as he went on with his comment, “or something real special.”

“There’s no short of special things in this city.” The metallic suitcase bumped against the car door a bit as the young man replied lightheartedly, handing a bit of cash over to the driver, before leaving the taxi. “Have a good day sir.” The car door was slammed shut and the taxi rolled away, soon disappearing into the mess of traffic on the main road, then the horizon line. The warehouse on the message was not very far, but the air around the area was calm, other Furor members most likely haven’t arrived yet.

Setting his suitcase on a few abandoned boxes Lucian quickly opened it up, rows and rows of strange looking metal rods with a sharpened end was strapped within it, along with two pistols with an unusual shape. Snarking at the sorry state of air security in the nation he quickly counted through the rods, doing some cryptic check-up on each one of them. The functionality of his gear told him that he could have killed that cab driver, in true Furor fashion. Other members most likely would have done so, if they choose public transportation at all. But this of course, wasn’t the case, there were many reasons why Lucian isn’t officially part of Furor, his disinterest in mindless violence could very well be one of them. He clipped the case closed before leaning against the boxes, a bit annoyed at the amount of dust that gathered upon them, and repeatedly checked his phone for the time.

“Ah, guess I shouldn’t be expecting a terrorist organization to show professionalism.”
 
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New Angeles
Cloud District
Eliza and Viv

11:55 AM July 30th, 2030
@Kat

“Operation Phoenix Child.” It was the name given to the little job Eliza and her team was given. Eliza never really liked fancy codes names, but this one seemed fitting. She said it again mockingly, looking over the file of young Maxine Clermont, the fiery extranormal they had been staking out, waiting for the right moment to swoop in and kidnap. Eliza initially wanted to do it during her therapy session, just storm the building and take the kid, but her boss was against it.​
She blew a bubble with the gum she chewed. “Hey Viv, weren’t you about this girls age when I was training you in D.E.E.R?” She asked, blowing another bubble, kicking her feet up onto the dashboard of the car. The two ladies were held up in a white car, parked near the therapy office. While Eliza and Viv sat there, the remainder of their team were held up at their temporary HQ a block away from the Clermont home.

Vivian’s fingers drummed against the steering wheel. “Yes, three years in,” she replied in a nonchalant tone. “Remind me again why we’re going after a fourteen year old.”

“This isn’t a normal fourteen year old girl. She’s powerful. Powerful enough for Arcadia to have two agents watching her at all times.” She paused, looking at two photos of the parents. “Besides, I think you could use a younger sister.” She teased, ruffling Viv’s hair. As she spoke, Maxine emerged from the therapist’s office, walking slowly towards her parents’ car. “Show time Viv, don’t get us spotted kid.”

Vivian rolled her eyes, “I’m old enough to drink. Stop calling me kid and maybe then, I’ll consider the pros of having a younger sister.”
The car was a bright red- perfect for tracking and less inconspicuous. Vivian was fairly good at memorization and following from a distance without being spotted.
“Hm, they don’t seem to be going to that place they usually go. What was it called again? Some French name?”

Eliza shrugged and blew a bubble, letting it pop quietly before answering. “Not sure, though I do hear they have good soup.” She watched the car they followed, before glancing at Viv. “So, I haven’t had the chance to talk to you about the incident with Takano.” She let her words hang in the air for a moment. “Don’t beat yourself up over it.” Eliza was never good at comforting others, nor comforting herself. “Alexander was worried you’d be taking it hard.”

Vivian shrugged, “It is what it is. I killed the guy, no turning back.”
She took a left turn and followed the car steadily, the air more silent than talk.
Eliza nodded in agreement before finally breaking the silence, murmuring a slight “You’re right.” She cleared her throat and turned up the radio, before blowing another bubble.

“Right about what?” Vivian glanced over at Eliza briefly, surprised at her statement.
“You killed him. Can’t turn back time.” She replied, glancing out the window. “I know it’s not easy, but you’re handling it well Viv.” She sighed and looked towards her driver. “Look, if you stay with this line of work it won’t get easier. This isn’t like when I was training you for D.E.E.R. Things get dicey and when it comes to it, you may have to kill again. Next time it might not be someone you have a grudge towards.”

“What makes you say that? I thought everyone we killed was someone we didn’t like, someone we had a grudge against,” Vivian stated with caution.

Eliza shook her head. “No, not always. Especially with the Hounds. Sometime you’ll have to get your hands dirty when you don’t want to.” She looked towards the floorboard. “You have a kind heart and good soul kid, I’d hate to see this path of revenge corrupt you.”
She stopped suddenly behind the car she was following upon a red light and jerked forward a bit.
“You kill innocents?”

Eliza jerked as the car came to a sudden stop. Instinctively she gripped the door before letting out a breath. Her gaze returned to the floor. She normally didn’t care what others thought about her, nor did she care for them. Vivian was different, almost like she was the younger sister Eliza never had. Viv was the first girl Eliza trained during her time with DEER, and one of the only ones she actually liked. It was a nice surprise to see Viv was apart of the Hounds, and she felt as if fate brought them together again.

Gritting her teeth she looked towards Viv. “No one is innocent Viv. Not you, not me. Some people just hide their skeletons better than others.” She let out a breath of air and looked out the window, chewing her gum quietly.

Vivian was silent for a moment before mustering up the courage to pretend it didn’t matter.
“I’ll get my revenge, that’s all that matters, whether they’re innocent or not. The whole Himura family has Ryan’s blood on their hands. Takano was just a loose end we got rid of. We’ll talk to the others soon, after we grab this girl.”

Eliza looked at Viv with a look of concern “Let me do it for you.” She offered, placing a hand on Viv’s shoulder.
“Why? Why should you do it for me?” Vivian retorted, knuckles turning white.
“It’s not that you can’t or that you shouldn’t.” Eliza said, noticing Vivian’s knuckles. “I’m asking because I want to.” She paused and licked her lips uneasily. “Viv, you’re a good kid. I just wouldn’t want to see you hurt.”

“I came into the Hounds ready to kill. I killed Takano, I can kill again.”
Eliza sighed before smiling, “Fine, at the very least I’m helping you in this little revenge mission of yours.” She settled back into her seat, blowing another bubble. “Besides, I’ll get to see how much you’ve improved over all these years.”

“Yes, you would. I’ll have to focus more on grappling and choking,” Vivian replied. “They can’t seem to get enough of that.”
Eliza laughed and nodded in agreement. “That’s definitely true. When we get back to HQ you should ask Alexander to show you some techniques, I’m sure he’d love to grapple with you.” She teased and playfully punched Viv’s arm.

Vivian’s cheeks flushed, “What? No. Absolutely not. No. Not doing that. Alexander has other things to worry about than grappling with me.”
“Why not! He’s a decent enough man, plus I can keep him in check. Besides, word around base is he wants a piece of little Viv.” She cooed playfully.

“What? No. Don’t play with me like that, Eliza,” Vivian exclaimed. “Alexander is just doing his duty as a Hound.”
Eliza scoffed, “Alexander doing his duty? Yeah right, that guy slacks off more than any Hound I know. Besides, you can ask anyone that knows him. He gets this gross sappy look when he looks at you. Honestly it makes me sick.” Eliza laughed again, kicking her feet up onto the dashboard.
“He’s not interested,” Vivian tried to conclude. “He’s just a boy. Boys do stupid things.”

Eliza nodded. “True, boys do stupid things, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t like you. I pay attention to things like this. The question is, are you interested in him?”

Vivian reeled in, snippy and in denial. “What? When did this mission all of a sudden become about my love life? This is not what we’re chasing down Maxine for. Get it together. They’re at the park it looks like. I’ll park a couple blocks down so they don’t question us.”
Eliza smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Look at you, dodging the question and ordering me around. You remind me of me."
 
New Angeles
North Arcadia Confinement Center
Elijah Brandt
11:12 AM, July 30th

After the relatively brief meeting with Director Pearl, Elijah got to enjoy some alone time. He sat in the interrogation room for a short time, thinking up a way out of there before the guards finally came for him. Being escorted through the building, he saw several empty cells he could've been thrown in but was shoved along past them into an elevator.
"So we doing laps around the building or am I gonna be given a cell?"
He remarked, breaking the silence in the elevator. One of the guards glanced at him but remained quiet. Elijah sighed, partly from boredom but also partly in anticipation. The elevator dinged and opened up onto a new floor, this one underneath the building.

It was darker on this floor than the one above. The guards that stood here were heavily armored, garbed in riot gear. He was transferred to a new pair of guards, before being taken across the floor. Being ushered through the floor, past more cells filled with extra-normal criminals and riot geared guards before finally taken into a new room, this one scheduled except for two beds and a camera.
The guards quickly undid the bindings around his legs before attaching a collar onto him. It was fitted with LED lights and was similar in manor to the cuffs around his wrists, which were removed right after the collar was put on. The guards left the room, pressing a button which caused an electric-field to cover the doorway. It'd be difficult to escape from here, but he'd figure something out.

New Angeles
Peacekeeper HQ, Southern Station
Vector Anderson
12:13 PM, July 30th

@Pupperr
Riley texted back at 10, though Vector couldn't get around to answering until his lunch break two hours later. He had been swapped with paperwork, most of it involving the Furor shut-down yesterday. Some involved the DEER agent, Alexandra Morris, since it was his call to turn her over so easily too Arcadia. He dreaded doing the paperwork, though he knew going into it he'd have to fill out lots of forms. Still though, with the promise of going out with Riley later that evening, the paperwork flew by.

The entire two hours Vector was beaming with excitement, nothing but the date on his mind the entire morning. As soon as he was on lunch he replied to her.
Great! 7ish sound good? We're going to a sushi bar in Chinatown on 34th street.