Open Post 001

[2020mod]

• Step one: start a thread in this post!
• Step two: specify who the thread is for (or open) in this post!
• Step three: make people reply to this post!
• AND THAT'S THE WAY YOU DO IT.


And don't forget, there's still the ooc discussion post! And nothing needs to be contained to this post! Create new logs to your heart's content! This AU is yours, so have at it!


musebox • rules • character list

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[catcherintherye]

The idea of a debriefing was really unappealing. Alex would yell at them for the slightest miscalculation, while incorrectly quoting various tacticians and attributing their work to a man he referred to only as "Nicholas". The information was so easy to prove flawed, Aoi didn't quite understand why the boy persisted, but it was what it was. Surely there were eccentricities of their situation that merited simply being forgotten.

"Do you remember the mayor?"He asked suddenly, not bothering to look up from the glowing screen or keys. "I believe that I have found him. Don't tell Alex."

[recurved]

Now that got Kate's attention. Whatever had been on her mind before was quickly forgotten, replaced by memories of the Mayor's downfall rushing back to her just as clearly as if they had happened five minutes ago.

"How could I forget," she grinned, sliding into a chair beside him. "I give you my word I won't say a thing to Alex... if you tell me everything you know."

[catcherintherye]

He clicked a few more keys, bringing up a file with what appeared to be a series of saved emails, photos, and internet news articles. "Are you familiar with Adrian Maskin, the pro-import author? Maskin is an identity created by Mayor Hundred. He's been hiding his powers, the phony, and living like a native for years now. He keeps writing books about supporting imports, but he lives like a native up in the woods somewhere where nobody can really find him, but I found him. I found him because even though he changed his face like a cowardly sonuvabitch nobody can hide forever and it's stupid to try."

Another sequence of keys was entered, and the screen changed again to show the assassination attempt. "It makes sense now, even if I haven't gotten him to confirm it. The phony."

[recurved]

"Maskin is Hundred?"

It all made sense, now that it was spelled out for her, and Kate felt stupid for not having put the pieces together herself before. She'd had all the pieces, having a faultless memory, but never the motivation to see the big picture. Perhaps it was because she hadn't realized there was a picture to see.

She stared at the screen before her, taking in all the information and any supplemental material she hadn't come across before. In a matter of minutes, she was well versed in the files Aoi had displayed for her. There was no point in asking if Aoi was truly sure. From what Kate was reading now, she was already convinced that Aoi was 100% correct.

"We have to tell Alex," she said quickly, mind suddenly leaping to a dozen possible conclusions. Keeping something this major from Alex simply wasn't an option. "This information is too vital to keep from him. Come on. Come with me."

[catcherintherye]

"No. I told you not to tell him and I'll erase the data from the main database if you do. I can do that and keep a copy in my cyberbrain's hard drive that you won't be able to get to. None of you can hack me and I know you can't. Plus it'll be in my ghost and I trust that instinct. It tells me that something big is coming." He paused, clicking away on the computer screen and burying the files to her, encrypting them away from anywhere the rest of his team would think to look. They were still technically around, of course, just nowhere that anybody but him would be able to get to.

"Something big is coming and my ghost tells me we will need the Mayor. I don't want Alex scaring him off. He scares people."

[recurved]

She narrowed her eyes at Aoi, glaring daggers at the screens as the information vanished into nothingness. "Alex isn't going to scare the Mayor. You have to trust me on this."

Kate trusted Alex, probably more than she trusted anyone else on their team, though she'd never admit as much aloud. There was something about working with someone so closely for so long, even the things she loathed about him she now relied on completely. Sometimes he did frighten her, and badly. He knew what caused the otherwise fearless Hawkeye to panic, and he knew what buttons he could press if he ever wanted to truly enrage her. But while he had that power, he'd never used it against her maliciously, and that, more than anything else had endeared him to her. She didn't expect everyone else to feel so comfortable around him, and their time together wasn't always pleasant, but she had full confidence that Alex wasn't some loose cannon that needed to be minded at all times. She sort of resented the implication that he'd terrify the Mayor on Alex's behalf. She knew he was in better control than that.

"We can get the Mayor, but we have to tell Alex. If you think he's scary now, imagine how scary he'll be if he finds out you're keeping this from him." Her death glare softened slightly. Her voice did, too. "He's my partner. I want his help with this."