Genesis Crisis: Resurgence IC

Caltha - Bunker

- James -

James nodded. Lenka would know what to say to him. She always did.

His expression grew thoughtful. “I don’t know.  I didn’t talk to her really. Maybe Lisa would know better or we can ask Jax or Keynes if they get here. Speaking of Lisa, maybe we should check if she's even still alive,” he added half-jokingly.

The door opened and Rise and Alina came in. James glanced at her and then closed his laptop. He wasn’t sure how upset Alina would be if she found out what they had done. This certainly hadn’t been the best day for her.

- Lenka -

Meanwhile Lenka had frozen in her spot when her quiet words spooked Marcus and he toppled over a bench. There was silence for a second and then she snickered.

She regained her composure after a few seconds and sat down next to Marcus on the bench.

“You’re worried because of the incident with the Redcape or because of what James told us?” she asked.

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Old Guard HQ
- Kurik -

Kurik sat down. He felt uncomfortable here and would much rather be with the other men from the Old Guard. However, he tried to keep his face smooth.

For a second he wondered where Farrington was, but then Ariana spoke.

He gave her a little smile. “I personally think the people are frustrated and tired of this chaos. Strain regulation is becoming more and more complicated. The government can’t or won’t act on it. Rules are not being strictly enforced.”

“I think Milady has to make a principal decision: Do you want to give the people more liberations and freedom or is your plan to restrict strains and such even more?” Kurik voiced his thoughts softly.

“Based on that, you should decide your next action,” he continued. “The people are asking for a change in their government and they are ready to listen. It’s our job to find out what kind of change they want if we want to use it to our advantage.”

Caltha - Bunker
Luke Jaron

Luke smiled at James comment about Lisa; it really seems like she was taking her time. When the two ladies come in, Luke was not so sure how to react.

Luke did not know Alina well, and was not really sure there was any word that would comfort her. Perhaps it was the best that he would leave cheering up Alina to Rise and James.

"I will go and get Lisa." Said Luke, as he stand up from the seat. But before he leave, he looked at the direction of Alina, "Just to let you know, as a citizen from Kadath, you will get my vote... There are people out there, still believes in you..."

Luke left the area; he was not so sure what he said would cheer Alina, but, he hoped it did.

Caltha - Bunker

- Alina -

As Rise and Alina entered the kitchen, they spotted James at the table, closing his laptop. Rise made a face at him over Alina's shoulder, trying to warn him that the jig was up.

"So what's our next move?" she asked Alina, hoping to stave of James' inevitable lecture.

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Old Guard HQ

- Kurik -

Ariana folded her arms and narrowed her thin red eyebrows.

"I refuse to restrict strains the way these protestors are talking," she said adamantly. "Certain regulation is needed, the way it was under my father's rule. We can't have just anyone with strains. But the idea of silencing them al is ridiculous. That kind of technology should never had been invented."

She turned and stared out the window thoughtfully.

"They used to adore my father," she murmured. "Every time he spoke, the people drank his words in. Then they abandoned him all at once for Alina Grey. Now, they're ready to turn on her. If the people are so fickle... will they turn on me someday too?"

She looked back toward them, suddenly much more innocent and childlike. For once, past the grandeur of her uniform, she looked like a young girl.

"Of course not," said Farrington, approaching them from behind. "We will not repeat the mistakes of the past."

He approached the group and smiled triumphantly.

"I have news," he said. "The Grand Council has passed a vote of no-confidence in Alina Grey."

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Caltha - Prison

- Raidon -

The prison was quiet as Raidon strode over to Ehlana's cell. His eyes swept the room, looking for any signs of suspicious activity, before stopping in front of the bars.

"There was a slight change of plans," he said, looking at captive agent. "An unforeseen turn of events. I'll bring you forward to testify tomorrow. However..."

He hesitated. This was definitely not the way he wanted to handle the situation, but he couldn't ignore the very real possibility of danger.

"There's a chance someone might try to silence you before then," he said, angling his body to cover the camera. His fingers probed inside his cloak for a com, which he put on lockdown.

"I want you to take this," he said, motioning for her to discreetly take it. "You won't be able to make any calls with it, but the emergency signal will still work. If anything happens, use it. I'll come right away."[/b]

Peterny - Shop Basement
Nadenka Orlov

"My favorite thing to say in Russian?" Nadenka looked at Alexei's direction and gave him a surprised look, then as she remembered what it was, her face turned little pink. "It's not a phrase that could used lightly." She quickly looked away to hide her pink face. Soon she recovered from it and cleared her throat, then she smiled warmly at Alexei. "Perhaps, I could teach you this then." said Nadenka. "There's hope, always. всегда есть надежда."  She smiled, and added. "Remember what my name meant? надежда is the word where my name come from."

Aegis

- Marcus -

"Both?" It came out as more of a question than a response. He wasn't entirely sure which of the two scared him more, but he also couldn't shake the broken and hazy memories that accompanied the feeling of losing control.

"I mean, this is all new to me. The whole magic thing is something that I was only just coming to terms with a few days ago, and now, finding out that I might have some kind of monster inside me? That's pretty heavy stuff for a guy, who up until recently, only had to worry about getting a pretty girl to notice him or somehow surviving another one of Professor Boring's lectures." He rolled his eyes at the last statement.

"It's just weird, knowing that I can probably lift four or five people with one arm." Marcus closed his eyes, thinking about how much weight he'd counted as he removed it from the bench earlier. Yeah, four or five people. Easy.

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- Alina -

Starting to regain some of her composure, Alina dropped into the chair beside James and gave a dramatic sigh. "I wish I knew what the next move was, but right now, it looks like Keynes is holding all the cards."

Her eyes darted to James, and she gave him a knowing look. "And you, mister. We're gonna have a chat about appropriate allocation of government resources later."

"I understand your frustrations with being kept out of the loop, especially now that I myself am going to be experiencing them. However, we have protocols in place for a reason. You taking over the video feed out of the Council Room is just as bad as little miss Ariana taking over the emergency broadcast network."

From the doorway, a previously unnoticed Lisa cleared her throat, drawing the attention of the room. "Should I just go back to my room now, or pour a cup of coffee for the rest of this discussion?"

Caltha – Prison

- Ehlana -

Ehlana had given up on her pacing, running out of plaguing thoughts and the will to keep moving eventually. It was probably better to let her body rest for now.

She was sitting on the bed, when she heard footsteps. It was Raidon. She couldn’t deny she was nervous about what was going to happen, but that switched to impatience as soon as he revealed the new plans.

“So I’m going be stuck in here for the entire day,” she muttered and stepped up to the bars. “Sitting bait…”

In a motion that looked very natural, she took the com from Raidon. Even if the cameras picked it up, it didn’t look like a hand-off.

She wasn’t sure if she wanted to believe his words. It seemed at least Raidon believed he would be here if she used the com. That was somehow comforting.

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Old Guard HQ

- Kurik -

Kurik nodded in approval to Ariana’s words. This would be a much better route to take. His eyes watched her closely. Her sudden insecurity made her look vulnerable. It was easy to forget how young she was, but if she really wanted to lead this nation, vulnerability wasn’t something she could afford.

“---,” before he could say anything, Farrington returned with interesting news.

Kurik looked towards Maxim. He hadn’t actually believed this to be possible, but it happened. They were one step closer.

“This is great news,” he said to Ariana. “One step closer.”

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Aegis

- Lenka -

Lenka raised her eyebrows. She could see the lost expression on Marcus’ face. She touched his arm gently.

“Hey take a deep breath,” she said, “You’re working yourself up. You don’t have a monster inside of you. All the other people who have a magic strain are just people like you and me. Possessing these extraordinary talents doesn’t make you monsters. That is purely determined by your actions.”

She leaned back and looked up. “You’re still in control, right? That’s the important thing. And just because you’re strong, doesn’t mean it’s something horrible. Think about all the good things you can do with it,” she shrugged. “Being afraid of it can have much worse consequences. So if that’s how you feel, maybe you should consider having your strain silenced.”



- James -

James glanced at Alina from the side and crossed his arms. That she would compare him to those who were trying to bring down the government just plainly hurt.

“Oh so it’s only okay that I use my skills when it’s convenient for you?” he snapped back. “I’m sorry, but that’s not how it works. I’m not in the military, Alina.” And today he was strongly reminded why he had made that choice.

"If I remember correctly, my ability to circumvent those protocols discreetly is exactly why you keep me around."

He took a deep breath, the last thing he wanted was to debate their principles. He knew there points where they clashed. And this certainly wasn’t the right moment to do so. Of course he could understand Alina’s frustration to the recent events.

“We’re you’re friends,” he continued. “And just because there are some people that you can’t trust anymore, doesn’t mean, you should lose trust in all of your friends. Please have some faith that we are just trying to help. Why else would we be here?”

He noticed Lisa in the door and waved her in.

Caltha – Prison
Luke Jaron

Luke went to look for Lisa, but he only got confused as Lisa was not there any more. Perhaps, she already got up and went to the kitchen?

Luke shrugged his shoulders. "Oh well." Said Luke to himself, and then walked his way back to the kitchen.

When he came back, he saw Lisa and others in. Luke scratched his hair. He was not really sure where he should go now; after redcape incident, Luke was not really sure how to be involved with the current situation. He only thought was how to be helpful and he could not think of, but of Ehlana who could help them.

Luke sighed and faintly smiled, shook his head. "No, Luke, you are making your choice to stand back. Even it becomes awkward, it's okay. It's a process." Said Luke to himself and he entered the kitchen.

But when he come in, he could not help but ask. "May I come in?" Like a puppy asking for a permission to enter owner's room.

Caltha - Bunker

- Alina -

Rise squirmed uncomfortably as she watched Alina and James' little spat about their questionably legal decision to spy. When Lisa finally arrived, however, she sat up straighter and resumed her normal air.

"It's about time you finally showed up," she said, clucking her tongue impatiently. "Were you just going to sleep the whole day away?"

Luke appeared shortly after, seemingly waiting for permission. Rise half-smiled, half-sighed as she titled her head at him.

"You don't have to ask permission, silly," she said lightly. "You're one of us, you know."

The food was starting to get cold, but Rise didn't feel like heating it up, half out of laziness and half out of punishment for Lisa showing up late to breakfast. Even so, she piled Lisa's plate up and gave her a look that dared her to complain.

No sooner had she handed over the plate than Jax strolled in, looking harassed. At the sight of Alina, he tried to draw himself up and look calm.

"Hey, how are you holding up?" he asked Alina, taking a seat next to her and stroking her red hair comfortingly.

"Jax..." Rise said hesitantly. "Is there really a chance that..."

Jax shook his head and looked away. "I don't know. But we have to focus on what's in front of us right now. Kokonoe was able to track this Lev's location. It's going to be up to you guys to bring him in. I wish I could go with you, but-"

"We can handle it," Rise said, nodding. "Don't you worry. We're all rearing to go."

Jax looked dubious, but she couldn't understand why. He seemed trouble by something as he pulled out a thumb drive and tossed it to James.

"It's the location Kokonoe tracked," he explained. "Tell me if anything seems familiar."

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Caltha – Prison

- Raidon -

Raidon frowned at Ehlana, marginally relieved that she at least cooperated in taking the com.

"It's hardly an ideal situation for either of us," he said. "But it's the hand we've been dealt. And I can promise you this much. Whether you cooperate with us or not, you're under our protection. We're not going to let anything happen to you."

Tipping his hat, Raidon turned and left the prison. He still wanted a chance to speak to Alina before she had to head out.

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Old Guard HQ

- Maxim -

Maxim inclined his head toward Farrington, eyebrows raised slightly, as though he hadn't foreseen this very occurrence.

"How very fortunate," he said. "What's our next move?"

Farrington smiled and stroked his mustache. "Without Alina Grey, there's no one left to properly oppose us. The Council is a farce. They'll acquiesce to our demands if we show up in sufficient numbers to cow them."

"But..." Ariana frowned. "I thought we were supposed to be doing things differently. If the people think we're just repeating the past conflict of the Army and Legion..."

Maxim smiled and shook his head. "If we arrive for a second attempt at diplomacy after Alina Grey's shameful attempts to derail the first, no one would think anything less of the Old Guard. In fact, you'd be lauded for your determination to hold to diplomatic tactics."

Farrington took a seat, smiling cunningly. "Yes, and if we just happen to force their hand behind closed doors, no one need be the wiser."

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Peterny - Shop Basement

- Alexei -

Alexei frowned when Nadenka turned pink at his question. What could her favorite Russian phrase be to illicit such a response?

Shrugging, he turned his attention to the new phrase she attempted instead. "всегда есть надежда," he repeated, stumbling only slightly. "So your name means 'hope'? Hmm... it suits you."

Even with all the pain she carried, she still seemed to hold onto some invisible thread of hope in life. She was...

"How do you say 'strong'?" he asked.

Aegis

- Marcus -

"That's the scary part." Marcus responded, shuddering slightly as the images flashed before his eyes again, like a series of still images. "The fight with the Redcape. I wasn't in control then. Or if I was, it didn't feel that way."

"But, I've not experienced that since then." He looked down at his hands, flexing his fingers slowly in, then out. "So, I don't know if it was a fluke or what."

"Wouldn't you be a little scared of yourself in that situation too?" He asked, looking in her direction for the first time since he'd started talking. "Maybe silencing my strain would be best, but I'm only now starting to get used to having this power. Just giving it up seems a bit rash, don't you think?"

Marcus sighed, letting his head fall against the wall behind him. "I know it's irrational. That I can do a lot of good with this power, but I can't get that one instance out of my head, and until I do, I won't feel like I can trust myself."

Turning slightly, he raised an eyebrow at his companion. "Why are you still talking to a mess like me, anyway?"

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- Alina -

"I know you're trying to help." Alina groaned, letting her face drop to the table. "Ugh... Today isn't my day."

She let her forehead rest against the cool metal for a few seconds, resetting her brain, before sitting back up to look in James' direction. "I keep you around because you're a friend, skilled or otherwise, and I'm sorry if it feels like I abuse those skills. They're something I don't possess. Which makes it too easy for me to ask that of you."

"The things the council disucss don't always make it to the public, and it's not that I don't trust you guys." She gestured to the table as a whole. "But I don't want you all thinking about the things we talk about in there when they may never be acted upon. That's part of the council's job, protecting others from having to worry about things they discuss."

She turned towards the door as Jax entered, and tried her best to put on a smile. Even she knew it would be a strained one though. "Aside from almost biting James' head off and being a weepy mess in front of Rise, I think I'm holding up alright." Alina responded, trying to infuse as much humor as she could into the situation.

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- Lisa -

"I hadn't slept at all in over a day." Lisa responded as she walked to the table, stifling a yawn. "And I was using my magic non-stop for the entire duration."

She pulled a croissant from the plate and munched on it as she made her way to the coffee pot. "I think I was due for some R and R."

Inhaling the aroma of the warm liquid, she closed her eyes for a moment, letting the stress go. After taking a couple sips, she moved back to the table, looking at James' computer over his shoulder. As the screen opened up a map, she blinked a few times, trying to make sense of it.

"Isn't that the bunker where Keynes kept us during the Legion incident?"

Caltha – Prison

- Ehlana –

„For someone who has very little decision-making power, you promise quite a lot,“ Ehlana commented when Raidon turned to leave.

She watched as he turned the corner and sighed. It felt like this day was dragging on forever. Lost in thought, she returned to the bed, sitting with her back to the cameras to take a closer look at the com.

Sure, Raidon had said she wouldn’t be able to make any calls with it, but it wouldn’t hurt to try. Worst thing that could happen was that she broke the com.

A closer inspection revealed that it wasn’t very different from the communicators they used here and in Arusia. Maybe if she could force a reset, that would lift the lock on it and allow her to check through the frequencies.

This venture didn’t have a very high success rate, but it was better than anything else to take her mind off the boredom that awaited her otherwise. Carefully she began to pry the com open.

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Aegis

- Lenka –

“But you don’t know that will happen again,” Lenka objected. “What if this was a one time thing because of all the stress and such. It’s not like you’ll be facing a Redcape every time you use your power.”

His next question caused her to go quiet and she cast her eyes down.
“I can’t really say what I would do or if I would be afraid,” she said, “I’ve never been so strong that I lose control.”

“However, my body does things I can’t control,” she continued, referring to her fainting spells. ”It just shuts down and no one knows why or how. When I was younger, I was afraid of that. Afraid to go outside, afraid to even cross the road. Everybody was always treating me like I was made of glass and would shatter in the next second. I couldn’t go anywhere on my own.”

“One day, we are going to the market and there is a car crash at the corner. It was awful, people were hurt and screaming. We went over to help and someone handed me a baby that had just been rescued. With all the adults to busy, no one paid attention to me. The whole time I was afraid I would faint and drop the baby. But it didn’t happen and everything was fine. It felt normal and I realized that I can still do things and that I couldn’t let my life be defined by something that may or may not happen.”

She looked up and found Marcus staring at her.

“Sorry,” she said and giggled. “You probably didn’t want to hear all that.”

“I’m just saying, things might not be as bad as your mind is telling you and you just have to trust yourself a little.”

Lenka smiled at him. “Also, you’re my friend, so I want to make sure you’re okay.”

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- James –

James watched Alina crumble next to him and he suddenly felt bad.

“It’s okay,” he said and patted her arm. “And while we’re only trying to help, I understand that things sometimes get drawn out of context. I’ll try to stay more…within the …eh…bounds.”

Fortunately Jax arrived and tossed him a thumb drive.

James eyes focused on pulling up the information. When Lisa pointed out the location, his eyes narrowed.

“You might be right. I thought it was decontaminated and sealed when we left it.” He pulled up some more images, this time from the government database and put the location and pictures up side by side.

“Here, Luke, can you help me with that?” he asked and tossed him a cable. “Can you connect it to the monitor, so we can all see the location and get a better viewpoint?”

“Thanks.”

Luke Jaron

Luke smiled, feeling grateful for what Rise had said. He was one of them. The thought had made him smile and cheered up inside. Of course, he tried his best not to be too happy about it though, as he was still aware that Alina was having a bad day.

As all Aegis were doing their best to cheer each other up, Jax entered. It was nice to see that his presence quickly made someone already better. Luke wondered, what would be like to have that someone too.

But before he could wonder any further, Jax bringing up the name 'Lev', brought Luke down to earth. And as soon as James and Lisa looked at the contents of what had Jax given them, making a comment about how the place really looked familiar, Luke wondered if this 'Lev' knew Aegis well too. Then, Luke was asked to connect the cable to the monitor. Luke nodded and just did that.

"You're welcome," Said Luke, feeling little proud himself that he helped, "So...if it is a place related to one of the old Aegis' hide out... Do you think Lev is an acquaintance of yours?" Luke asked others in curiosity if they could think of someone. Then again, this 'Lev' might have found that place by chance; however, what are the chances that someone accidentally finding the place that had kept Aegis away from Empire's grasp for long time.

__________________________________________________________________________

Nadenka Orlov

"That depends on the context." Said Nadenka, giving playful smile. "If you wanted to say strong woman or strong man; in Russian, сильный is being used to describe them." She looked at Alexei, "For instance,
Вы сильный человек(You are a strong man) means you are a strong man." Then she smiled nostalgically. "This really brings me back memories, I had fun teaching him Russian too. Later, he became very fluent and we were talking to each other in Russian so that no one could understand." Nadenka gave soft giggle, then looked at Alexei,That said, do Arusians have different way of talking to each other? I mean, you guys practically have different culture and all... so it would not surprise me... Like how do you earn Arusian's trust?" She asked, her eyes were sparkling as new question about Arusian came into her mind.

Caltha - Bunker

Rise stared at the tracking information Kokonoe had given them, but she could hardly believe what she was seeing.

"The bunker.... but why?" she murmured, biting her lip. Luke thought it might be someone they knew, but she shook her head. It didn't seem possible.

"Is it some kind of taunt? A cruel joke?" she asked, staring at the floor. That place had been like a home to them... How dare this Lev person hole up there and contaminate their good memories with his presence?

"Let's go," Rise said, standing up. "I can't stand the thought of that creep staying there a minute longer."

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Peterny - Basement

Different way of talking... Alexei shrugged.

"I think Arusians talk less than you Kaddathians," he said. "We're diligent. We do our duty. We don't bother to stand around and debate everything. Seems as though Kaddathians are never satisfied."

Trust, that was a trickier subject.

"Arusians trust Arusians," he said. "We only survive because we work together. Cogs in a machine, you know? But outsiders... I think Kurik was the first and only one. He was a good man. It helped that he'd given up his old country. He had nothing else behind him, no reason not to become one of us."

Alexei looked over at Nadenka, eyeing her appraisingly. "You... I trusted you. You were the same way. I saw that same look when I first met you - someone who's lost all ties to home and country. You hadn't left like him, but I could tell you were the same. Nothing around you felt like it mattered anymore. But you're good too. You help people. It's who you are."

He cleared his throat. It was the longest he'd talked in... well, as long as he could remember.

Aegis

- Marcus -

Marcus took a moment to reflect on Lenka's words. As odd as it may seem, the two of them had a surprising number of things in common. Sure, their lives had been very different up until this point, but some of their personal struggles were very similar. He looked over at her, just as she turned in his direction, and he couldn't quite pull his eyes away.

"Have I ever told you how amazing you are?" Marcus asked. Before she even had a chance to deny it, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a hug. "Thank you for telling me that. Not only did I want to hear it, I think I needed to hear it."

He gave her another squeeze before letting her go and pushing himself to his feet. For a moment, Marcus considered apologizing for the spontaneous hug, but the way he saw it, they had both needed it for different reasons. Plus, bringing it up now would probably make it awkward.

"I may not be okay right now, but I will be." He offered a hand to pull her to her feet. "How about we get back to where the action is?"

------------------------------------------------------------------

- Lisa -

"I don't know anyone named Lev." Lisa shook her head at Luke's question. Of course, it could be a code name of some sort, but she didn't know anyone that would threaten to reveal this kind of information to the public.

She glanced at Rise, who suddenly seemed ready for a fight. "Are we sure that we're ready for another battle? Some of us are already running on fumes."

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- Alina -

"And some of us have had no outlet for our energy in the last year." Alina responded with a real grin for a change. "I'd like to have a little chat with this Lev character. Besides, no one said anything about a battle. We just want to talk."

Lisa gave her a knowing look, and Alina shrugged. "Okay, so I'll start with talking, and it will probably degenerate from there, but we'll at least try to be reasonable."

As Lenka and Marcus came through the door behind her, Alina pushed herself to her feet. "How quickly can all of you be ready for a road trip?" She glanced over her shoulder at Jax. "Minus one. I need someone to hold down the fort, and you've still got obligations here."

Caltha – Bunker
- Lenka -

Lenka held Marcus’ eyes for a moment and was surprised by the hug. It felt good and genuine and made this place feel more comfortable and Lenka realized how much she had needed a hug since they started this adventure.

“Thank you. I’m glad I told you then,” she said with another smile and allowed him to pull her up. He looked better too, more calm and less freaked out.

They returned to the kitchen where some new information had surfaced.

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- James -

James kept looking at the monitor.

“It must be a coincidence,” he answered Luke quietly. He didn’t want to believe that someone would do this intentionally to taunt them. “I don’t know anyone named Lev either, but that doesn’t mean anything. He might have heard of us…”

It quickly became clear that they wanted to deal with this personally. Rise and Alina were fired up. James nodded.

“Yes, let’s deal with this,” he said. Marcus and Lenka came back. He threw Lenka a look, but knew it was pointless to even try to argue she stay behind. They were way past that point.

“Let’s say five minutes,” he suggested. “Go grab a few things, gear and weapons to be on the cautious side.”

He turned to Alina. “You have a quicker way of getting us there than using a car?”

Caltha – Bunker
Luke Jaron

"Coincidence...huh..." Said Luke, not really convinced. Perhaps, Luke had somewhat different look from other members because he is, after all, outsider.

Luke saw Lenka and Marcus coming back to where action belongs, something troubled Luke as he saw both of them quite lifted up. Something inside of him Jealous of how Marcus and Lenka looked even closer than before. Luke shook his head lightly, whatever he was thinking, it was pretty clear it was not helpful at the moment. Besides, Marcus was going through something and he was also quite glad that Lenka was able to help him out.

Luke heard James talking to Alina for transportation, Luke smirked, he knew something faster than a car. He was not so sure they would have that available though.

Caltha - Bunker

- Rise -

Rise frowned at Lisa. She knew Lisa had gone through a lot, but she'd been cooped up and feeling helpless for a while now.

"Not me. I'm ready," she said. Alina seemed to think along the same lines. Rise couldn't help but giggle at her exchange with Lisa. You couldn't say she wasn't self-aware.

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- Jax -

Jax smiled at Alina's change in mood. It was good to see her energized again.

Almost immediately, however, his smile dropped as Alina looked over at him and declared her intention for him to remain behind. He got to his feet as well, brows furrowed.

"But-" he began before cutting himself short. She was right, of course. Under the circumstances, it would be best for him to remain in the capital and make sure things didn't get too out-of-hand. Raidon would definitely need his backup with their prisoner situation.

"All right," he murmured. "Just... stay safe, okay? And try not to ice this guy too heavily. I bet it's going to be hard to hold back right about now."

He managed a grin and pulled her close as the others filed out of the room to get ready.

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- Rise -

Rise followed James out of the kitchen as they went to prepare for the trip.

"You think we should ask Kokonoe to borrow Lambda?" she asked him. She glanced at Luke, who seemed to be smirking with some unspoken thought.

"Unless you have a better idea?" she asked Luke, poking him playfully in the ribs.

Aegis

- Alina -

"No worries, big guy." Alina patted Jax on the cheek before leaning in to give him a quick kiss. "I'll keep things under control."

With a little wave to him, she followed the others out into the hallway. Hearing Rise ask about Lambda, she considered their options for a moment.

"Well, Keynes didn't tell me that we couldn't use Lambda." Alina responded with a smirk and a shrug. "But I'm not sure I want to be stranded at the bunker when she leaves. So, I think it's best that we use my family's airship."

"It'll be a little tight with all of us inside, but you all like each other, right?"

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- Marcus -

Weapons and gear? Marcus considered that for a moment. He didn't have any weapons or gear, and he only had bare-bones training with the weapons he'd handled in his martial arts training. Still, it might be good to take a look at what the bunker had to offer.

Making his way past the gym, he moved into the armory. A layer of dust still lingered here, where they hadn't cleaned it away, but all of the equipment seemed to be in decent shape.

His eyes rested on a slightly curved sword, and he lifted it from its bracket, giving it a test swing. Heavy, but that didn't bother him. It would be more of a cleaver than a finesse weapon. Still, it felt good in his hand. He pulled the scabbard from the same shelf and fastened it to the back of his belt, so that the blade would rest across the back of his hip.

"Lenka! Luke!" Marcus stuck his head back out into the hallway, calling to the others. "There's gear in here, if you don't already have any of your own."

------------------------------------------------

- Lisa -

Lisa frowned as something tickled the back of her mind. It was like a fragment of a memory trying to surface, but she couldn't quite make all the pieces fit together. Something about his Lev character sounded oddly familiar, but she couldn't figure out why.

Shaking her head, she followed the others down the hall in silence. All would be clear soon enough...

Caltha - Bunker
Luke Jaron

"Not really? But... two years ago, I heard about a strain that allows you to go wherever you want." Said Luke, "I mean, after meeting Lambda, I thought you all had access to those." Luke rubbed his neck, "I mean, most of you been there, so I thought we could use that? Said Luke.

Then Luke heard Marcus calling out for him and Lenka, it brought him to grin. Perhaps, he was becoming their pack now. "Coming!" Said Luke then Luke looked at Rise once again, "Well I leave the planning to you all, I will go and get myself ready." Luke gave a smile, and he went to where Marcus were.

___________________________________________________________________________________

Peterny - Basement
Nadenka Orlov

"I am... I am glad to hear that..." Said Nadenka, little surprised that Alexei being little more talkative than before. "It kinda showed, huh?" Said Nadenka, "Yeah, my heart for Kaddath is no longer it used to be..." She smiled weakly, "But, I still can't help it... I still care for the people." Nadenka sighed short, then she looked at Alexei with warmth, and playful smile. "Thank you for trusting me, really. You know, I really admire your honesty. If we have met in different circumstances, I might have fallen for you."

__________________________________________________________________________________

Belobog, "Belo", Volkov

Belobog was not going to let anyone harm Maxim. After losing all of his comrades to the leakers and perhaps, because of how he saw Old Guards as reliability, he became even sharper than any others.

Was he like a beast that was cornered to the wall? No, he was more like a beast that was waiting to pounce that may threatened Maxim.

In any case, he was going to protect Maxim, no matter what.

Caltha - Bunker

- James -


James grinned. "That strain does exist indeed, but it's very rare and Lambda is currently the only one who naturally possesses it," he responded to Luke.

He turned around to Alina. He shuddered slightly at the thought of being in a cramped little space. "I think we'll manage," he said. "Hopefully it won't take long."

They went into their room and James picked up his Katanas as well as some electronic equipment and his laptop.

"We'll be okay, right?" he asked.

------------------------------------------

- Lenka -

Lenka curiously followed Marcus when he called out. Fighting wasn't a situation she wanted to be confronted with so suddenly. A little more preparation would've been nice.

She peeked her head into the armory.

Everything was covered in a layer of dust. It tickled her nose and she sneezed.

By the looks of it, she was almost sure, she wouldn't be able to fight with any weapon here for long until it became too heavy.

"Did you see anything that could fit me?" she asked and began to take a look around.

Something that was coiled up in the far corner caught her eye. She pulled on it and revealed a long, but fine chain. It was very light, but still looked strong and durable. It ended in a pointed tip.

"How about this...," she mused. It felt good and at least she would be able to work with it, probably better than with anything else here.

Caltha- Bunker

- Alina -

Rise smiled at James and put a hand on his shoulder, recalling just how much small spaces bothered him. It brought back memories of crawling through pipes together to infiltrate the satellite tower.

"We're going to be fine," she said. "I can feel it, like we're on the edge of something really important."

She collected her bag and fans, and headed for the door.

"Come on, let's get going," she said, holding out her hand to him.

------------------------------------------------

Raidon

Raidon entered the bunker, encountering Jax and Lisa in the hallway.

"They're getting ready to head out," Jax said, casting a glance down the hall.

Raidon nodded, then looked over at Lisa.

"How are you holding up?" he asked.

[OOC: Payne, can you have Alina join them after she'd done getting ready.]

------------------------------------------------

Peterny - Basement

Nadenka Orlov

Alexei looked up at the ceiling and sighed.

"I'm starting to think that governments don't look after people," he murmured. "People look after people, yeah?"

He looked down at her. "You look after me, and I look after you," he thought.

Then Nadenka smiled. And her words made the floor seem to fall out from under him.

"Thank you for trusting me, really. You know, I really admire your honesty. If we have met in different circumstances, I might have fallen for you."

Alexei blinked, staring. "You..."

He trailed off, his mouth dry. It took him a few moments before he could speak.

"Under different circumstances, you might not have liked me at all," he said, standing up. "I think they're out now."

He pointed a thumb at the shop above. They should get going if they wanted to make it to the capital.

------------------------------------------------

Old Guard - Maxim

The Old Guard airship landed near the Kessel mines in eastern Kaddath. There was no convenient bunker here, just a small, abandoned mining outpost.

"Hardly royal accommodations," Farrington said, eyes narrowed. "But this should be a short stay in any case."

He nodded to Lady Adalia, and they walked off toward the town hall to set up. Maxim watched them go, then turned to Kurik with a smile.

"You should mingle with the other soldiers," he said. "Keep fresh in their mind who they can rely on when push comes to shove."

He patted Kurik's shoulder, then gestured to Belo. "Let's go for a walk."

Maxim waited until they were on the outskirts of town before speaking. He looked out across the barren landscape and narrowed his eyes.

"Farrington wanted to speak to Kurik alone," he murmured. "That's... concerning."

He turned to face Belo. "Belo, three agents were assigned to this mission. Now there's one. Ehlana failed in her abilities. Alexei's loyalty was compromised. I need to be sure that I can rely on you regardless of what happens next."

Aegis

- Marcus -

Marcus glanced around the room at Lenka's request. Truthfully, most of the items available would be too heavy for her, but he figured pointing that out right now definitely wouldn't set him up for a friend of the year award. Before he could find anything reasonable, Lenka seemd to come up with her own solution though.

He raised an eyebrow at her choice, trying to fight off a grin. "I didn't take you for a whips and chains kind of girl." Marcus quipped, letting the grin take over. "But by all means, whatever does it for you, milady."

Knowing that should probably earn him a lashing with the very implement in her hands, Marcus quickly ducked out of the room (and out of reach).

-----------------------------------------------

- Lisa -

"You do know how to fly an airship, right?" Lisa asked as the others all filtered out of the hallway.

Alina shot her an amused look in response. "What do you think?"

"I think it's doubtful you would have suggested it otherwise, but I've not had the best experience with airships recently. So, I'm overly cautious right now."

That got a grin out of the former High General. Hopefully, there would be more to follow. Seeing Alina walking around in a gloomy haze wasn't doing much for the group's morale.

"Are you not going to fetch your bow?" Alina asked, gesturing to the armory.

Lisa blinked, considering that for a moment. "You know, I've not touched a bow in almost six months, but it might not hurt to have one." Turning down the hallway, she slipped into the armory and pulled a bow and quiver of arrows from the wall. Given the state of her magic reserves, having a conventional weapon might serve her well right now.

[OOC: Feel free to get them on to the estate and into the airship.]

Caltha - Bunker
Luke Jaron

When Luke arrived where Marcus had called him out for, Marcus just ran out from the place. Perhaps, dodging something was more like it. Luke eyebrows were furrowed, not so sure what was going on.

"What are you doing outside?" Luke asked as he got into the room to see for his own equipment. As Luke entered he saw Lenka with her whip, Luke smiled at her choice of weapon.

"It seems you have chosen a weapon that suits your last training." Said Luke. For some reason, he was no longer reacting to her the way he did before. Perhaps, he finally found peace? "Some say whip is a weapon for those who likes to shape their own life in their own way. It suits you." Then Luke fired up, beaming his eyes at the weapons that was presented there.

"Okay then, time to find my weapon." Said Luke cheerfully and looked around the weapon stocks. Luke eyes then went to the fist weapons, remembering the encounter with the bear man and his shocking batons, Luke looked at the materials that was made. He was trying to make a guess of what it was made of though.

Caltha - Bunker

- James -

James nodded and zipped his bag up. Hearing the confidence Rise had in him always made him feel more confident in his own abilities as well.

He took her hand. "Yes we will," he said and put an arm around her shoulders. They walked back through the corridor to head towards the kitchen and the others.

-------------------------------

- Lenka -

Lenka's expression jumped between anger and amusement at Marcus' comment. She stuck her tongue out at him when he ducked out of the room.

"Boys...," she muttered and rolled the chain of the whip up in her hand. Just then Luke came inside the armory. She shrugged a little when he complimented her choice of weapon.

"I just picked whatever seemed best, I didn't think about it that much," she admitted. "Normally I don't have to use weapons."

Then she noticed his questioning glance.

"Will you be able to find something that suits you?" she asked.

OOC: feel free to take us back to the others in your post when you're done, Nex

--------------------------------

Old Guard

- Kurik -

Kurik gave a slight grimace when Maxim told him to go mingle. Even when he was in the army, that was something he never actively pursued.

With a low sigh, he nodded and followed the rest of the soldiers to the barracks. He recognised a few faces here and there, greeting them with a nod.

Suddenly a hand grabbed his shoulder from behind.

"And here I thought you were going to get better accomodation than we do."

Kurik turned around. It was Lorrin, with Annabelle just a step behind him.

He gave the man a half-smile. They both looked a little worse for the wear, but seemed to be okay.

"I thought that too, when I signed up," he said, clearly not serious. "But apparently not. Did you find a room suitable as a control room?"

"There's an old command center," Annabelle interjected and moved past them. "We were just going to have a look at it."

Lorrin nodded and grabbed Kurik's sleeve. "C'mon, you can take a look as well."

Nodding, Kurik followed them along the hallway.

Caltha - Bunker

The group started to convene at the entrance to the bunker, with only Luke and Lenka still lagging behind. As Alina approached with Lisa, Raidon nodded to her and walked over.

"Alina," he said, his eyes drifting toward the ground. "I'm sorry that happened back there. It shouldn't have happened."

He narrowed his eyes, knuckles whitening as he clenched his fist subconsciously. "But I want you to know that all of us haven't lost faith in you. Most of the council is just confused by everything that's happened. And I feel certain there's a poisonous influence there as well - which I will root out. And when we manage to clear away all the deception and treachery blinding the truth, your council will come to their senses, and so will the people."

He looked up at Alina, his eyes intense. "This country needs you. Even if it doesn't feel like it right now, it's the truth."

He thought of Arya, of their two unborn children. But this time, it wasn't fear that welled up inside him. It was anger.

"I don't want to think of them being born into a country without your leadership," he murmured, not realizing he'd spoke the words aloud. "I can't."

Luke Jaron

"I don't know, but I guess I don't mind using these." Said Luke, wearing rubber gloves to slide in the fist weapons to his hand smoothly. The fist weapon he had chosen allowed his fingers to move freely, covering each finger with solid metal. It would have been to heavy to average person, but as a person who had been training with weights and could fight with even heavier weight around his shoulder, it was nothing. "Besides, it's not the weapon, but what matters most is the user's purpose, and user's will." Said Luke in almost in whisper.

Perhaps, Strain should be looked upon with such matter, too? A thought came to his mind as he was about to face a person who believes Strain should be removed completely.

Luke then look at the fist weapon that quite fitted him well once more, it was definitely masterfully crafted and refined, Luke did not know metal could become this flexible.

"Alright then, let's go." Said Luke, giving faint smile to Lenka. Even though, he still feel his heart racing whenever he looked at her, it no longer felt that he could not control it.

Was Lenka irresistible to him that he would have stared at her for long time if time allowed him to? Yes. But, perhaps, it is best that he should hide emotion for now. Hiding emotion is challenging, but, for some reason, Luke decided in his heart, it would probably best that he hides it from Lenka for now.

Luke and Lenka soon joined up with the everyone else.