The coagulated blood in Alec's ears filtered some of Elijah's many attempts at throwing him off balance. Although he would never admit it to him, the mind game he was playing was affecting him in a way. The fire meta was looking to dig out information on Alec's emotional status, and Alec knew that, which is why as soon as Nightingale responded to his first question he tapped out of Cerebro. He didn't want the wisecracking hillbilly to think he was that cautious around him, in spite of the fact that there were plenty of reasons to be. His contemplation was interrupted by a couple of scratching sounds coming from above, likely from the roof. At the same time, a message was sent by the MHRC contact detailing Nightingale's backstory; the timing was purely coincidental. It seems he bribed his way into the government registry archive. He threw the message a look, holding his index finger upwards, gesturing Elijah, who asked him a barrage of questions, to have patience. About ten seconds later, he slid his phone in a little placeholder down his left thigh before moving his eyes towards the fire meta. "If you don't mind, I'd like to be the one asking questions here," he paused his deadpan speech to pull down the mask, revealing more of his scars "but since you asked, a glass would be fine.", Alec went on. If Vesuvius wanted to play games, so be it. "Also, don't bother cooking for me. I am not staying here for much longer.", he finally finished, before shifting his sight to Nightingale. "A child soldier you say? Who was he working for? Was he with you? I need details, Roze.", the now unmasked hero referred to the girl by her name, wanting to imply he worked for the government. He assumed she was smart enough to get the hint. In the meanwhile, the scratching roof noise was still going on. What the hell was that guy doing? ((Btw, in case the whole thing about the coagulated blood confuses you, it's a reference to an earlier post, where Alec uses Cerebro;experimental and blood bursts out of his ears as a result.)) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Back at Safehouse Q, Dean was watching the other metas express their disapproval at Constantine's hideout choice. While he could understand the controversy King's decision raised, he didn't mind the setting himself. Plus, the reason for choosing a whorehouse as a hideout was legitimate enough. Jenni also disapproved, but then again Jenni disapproved at everything the group did, so her attitude in this case wasn't much of a bombshell. Her incoherent babbling and critique at almost everything her brother accomplished did have the potential to get annoying after a while, but Dean was already used to it. The FBI meta, Constantine Raphael King, or whatever his name, was already issuing orders to the rest of the metas. Dean, who was at the corner, having a quiet quarrel with his noisy sister, didn't get anything assigned. Either Constantine wanted him around, or he just forgot. Maybe he had a special assignment. Patience wasn't the young hero's forte, so he decided to ask anyway "What about me? Do I get anything?"