[color=gray][center][img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1131065754469539920/1131066048158912582/Upyr.gif[/img][/center]

[color=silver]
[b]Interactions:[/b]
[b]Mentions:Noah, Sunita, Natsumi, David, Zachary, Rex, Haven, Zelda, Holt, Frederick[/b]
[b]Location: Russia, San Francisco, Alcatraz[/b]
[/color]
[hr]

[indent][i][center]Russia! Russia... Everything in you is open, desolate and level;
your squat towns barely protrude in the midst of the plains like dots, like counters;
there is nothing to tempt or enchant the onlooker's gaze. 
But what is this [color=#CC0000]inscrutable, mysterious force[/color] that draws me to you?
-Nikolai Gogol[/center]

[color=white]“...a few more minutes until we’re at the rendezvous.”[/color] Alexandra slowly opened her eyes, having to squint through them as they adjusted to the artificial light that illuminated the back of the truck. Little Dimitry sat next to her, the 15 year old boy was holding a large and blocky GLONASS device in his hands to track their progress. He’d been like this ever since they set off from the basecamp two days ago, eyes constantly glued to that little screen.

[color=white]“Cut it out Dimitry, Sasha had just fallen asleep!”[/color] Vasily hissed at the boy, who made himself as small as possible by hunching over his GLONASS device. It was surprising to hear him snap at the young boy as he’d always been more of a jolly fellow back at camp. But after one quick glance was enough to reveal the obvious anxiety that he was feeling and the whole idea of this insane operation. They all were anxious of course, but Vasily seemed to take it particularly harshly.

Suddenly the truck rocked violently from side to side, eliciting exclamations of obscenities by the passengers in the back as they almost fell from the benches. [color=CC0000]“It’s fine Dimusha, that would have woken me up anyway.”[/color] Alexandra tried to put on a reassuring smile to the young boy, hoping that the annoyance in her voice wasn’t too noticeable. Dimitry’s eyes briefly left the screen as he glanced at her, a cautious smile forming on his lips before returning back to the display. 

Getting up from the bench, Alexandra carefully made her way to the back of the truck, pulling the rear flap away to check what caused the violent shaking. It turned out to just be another of the many potholes that covered every road in Russia outside of the capital Oblast. The money that should’ve been spent on fixing the local infrastructure had likely been siphoned away by at least one oligarch, three different government agencies, six local officials and ten private contractors. The idea of those leeches living in luxury at the expense of the Motherland made her stomach turn in disgust.

Or maybe that was just the thought of her father, that perfidious traitor who had robbed Russia of its saviors for his own selfish gain.

The image of her father left her mind as quickly as it had come because the truck turned to go off the road. A few minutes later they would stop in what seemed like the middle of nowhere. [color=white]“We’re there!”[/color] Dimitry exclaimed with excitement as the worn brakes squealed in protest to the halting of the old vehicle. The passengers got up from their benches, picked up their duffle bags and then leaped out of the back of the truck, Alexandra being amongst the last to leave. 

Looking around it seemed like they were a couple kilometers away from the Vladivostok International Airport. Almost on cue to emphasize where they were, a large passenger plane flew over them at low altitude as it was making its approach to land. 

There was no time to admire the sight though, as Alexandra could hear the cabindoor of the truck slam shut. The group turned to face the man approaching them. A giant of a man wearing military garb that seemed to be twenty years out of date slowly made his way to the group, a somber expression on his face. 

The man took his cap off, revealing his shortly trimmed gray hair. He made sure to make eye contact with every single one of them, remaining quiet for a while as he collected himself, clearly fighting back the tears. Clearing his throat The Captain’s booming voice finally made itself heard. [color=#679267]“Listen carefully children, and listen well. You all know the details of what to do but let me repeat the bottom line of it just to be certain. Make sure you go to check-in desk 5 where you will meet Anatoly Preobrazinsky. He will make sure you’ll get past security without them properly inspecting you. Make sure to keep your barcodes hidden from anyone out there, as it will out you for being a metahuman! Keep a low profile on the plane until you can see the Space Needle on the horizon. That structure shall mean salvation from the Government for all of you.”[/color] 

He then addressed Artyom, the most senior of the group. [color=#679267]“It’s time Artyom, make sure you guide these kids safely to freedom.”[/color] The slender boy swallowed before saluting The Captain and getting the kids ready to set off. 

With Artyom leading the way the group started walking in single file towards the airport. Right as Alexandra was about to set her first step she felt a hand fall on her shoulder. Looking back she saw The Captain, his lips in a sad smile that was partially covered by his trademark bushy mustache. [color=#679267]“There’s one final thing I want to give you Sasha.”[/color] He reached into his pocket and pulled out his stainless steel flask. It had the Russian double headed eagle neatly engraved on it and a crimson star emblazoned on the top. Holding it out in front of her his smile widened. [color=#679267]“I think you’ll make better use of it than this old sod.”[/color] Alexandra’s eyes widened. [color=#CC0000]“I can’t take that sir! I know how much it means to you, it was your-”[/color] The old man raised his hand to silence her. [color=679267]“It was, yes.”[/color] his smile faltered for a brief moment and Alexandra could see the tears forming in his eyes, much as they were welling up in hers too. [color=679267]“But now I entrust it to you. Just remember to not get spotted with it before you’re 21 out there, those Americans are such prudes when it comes to alcohol.”[/color] A chuckle escaped from both of their lips.

Alexandra gratefully took the flask from The Captain, gazing at it for a moment before looking back into his sad blue eyes. [color=CC0000]“I promise to hand it back to you [i]when[/i] our paths cross again!”[/color] She made sure to put an emphasis on that they would, in fact, meet again in the future. This got another chuckle from the old man. [color=679267]“I’m sure you will kiddo.”[/color] He firmly put his hand on her shoulder one more time. [color=679267]“I’m sure you will.”[/color][/i]

[hr]

Alexandra felt the sweat trickle down her forehead the moment they left the air conditioned airport lobby. It was obvious to any onlooker that the Russian and the Californian summer heat did not mix at all. The Seattle weather had been so nice in comparison. This however? She imagined this must be what hell felt like. She almost immediately dropped her duffle bag on the ground once she reached the bus stop so she could stow her hoodie away. 

[color=#8080FF]“I told you it’d be hot.”[/color] Alexandra shot a glance at the source. It was a sharply dressed man who had been following her from several feet away. This man was her handler, an Aegis agent by the name of Thomas Lynch. He had done most of the arrangement of getting her and her Cell over from Russia and now he was here to make sure she would adjust well to her new environment. A smug grin was plastered on Lynch’s face. [color=#8080FF]“But would you listen to me? Noooo, of course not.”[/color] It was almost enough for Alexandra to put her hoodie back on just to prove a point. But then she thought about whether that point was worth getting a heat stroke over and she decided against it. Lynch chuckled as he adjusted his Ray-Bans. [color=#8080FF]“You’re as stubborn as a mule. You’re one of Boris’ students alright, there’s no doubting that.”[/color] 

Alexandra let out an annoyed huff as she quickly stuffed that infernal hoodie into her duffle bag, before hoisting it over her shoulder once again. She then fished her flask out of her back pocket and took a big swig out of it. Despite him wearing aviators with mirrored glasses Alexandra could just feel that Lynch was judging her. [color=CC0000]“Is only water. Is fine.”[/color] He skeptically raised a single eyebrow to which she responded by extending the flask over to the older man. [color=CC0000]“Try if you don’t trust me.”[/color] Lynch raised his hands in defeat. [color=#8080FF]“Fine, fine. I believe you.”[/color]

After returning the flask to her back pocket Alexandra glanced back at Lynch, looking him over with an amused smirk. [color=CC0000]((“You know, you dress quite conspicuously for someone who’s supposed to be an ex-spy.”))[/color] She said in Russian, knowing he spoke the language almost as well as a native like her. [color=CC0000]((“Only thing missing is the newspaper with the eye holes cut out. I thought the whole point of joining the program publicly like this instead of going through the backdoor was to draw as little attention as possible.”))[/color] 

That comment elicited a chuckle from the older man. [color=#8080FF]((“If I were you I’d be more concerned about my own attire than that of an older gentleman.”))[/color] Alexandra frowned at him. [color=CC0000]((“What’s wrong with my clothes?!”))[/color] she replied, clearly his comment had struck a nerve with the young girl. [color=#8080FF]((“Well, for one if you took a look around you’d see that your style doesn’t really mix with current American fashion.”))[/color] Lynch said as that annoying smirk across his face again. [color=#8080FF]((“And talking Russian right in front of a busy airport probably doesn’t improve things either.”))[/color] 

Alexandra knew he was right of course. It’s not like she had a large wardrobe, all she had was the stuff she had in her duffle bag and the clothes she wore on her back when she left Russia. And while they had been in Seattle for a few days, she hadn’t gone out to buy new clothes. Today she had been wearing her telnyashka below her hoodie, but the striped undershirt probably wouldn’t have been that out of the ordinary on its own, nor was the ponytail in her hair a real eye catcher. The [url=https://kula-tactical.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/0b934c0872f43fa09a82c5a390398c0e-680x680.webp]kamysh pattern trousers[/url] on the other hand, that was a different story. And the worn out combat boots probably didn’t help either.

Lowering her head in defeat, Alexandra muttered a short [color=CC0000]“I see your point.”[/color] under her breath, which earned another round of her handler’s amused chuckles. 

As they were making their way towards the bus stop Lynch would explain the nature of the Ju-V program to Alexandra. Again. It had practically been the only thing he talked about ever since they met. About how it was there to help Metahumans in a society that reviled them. How the language used to describe Aegis and the program were much harsher than what they actually meant due to public opinion and all that. All that sort of stuff that Alexandra honestly couldn’t care less about. She was just happy to not live with the sword of Damocles called the FSB hanging over her head all the time. If that meant living a couple years on a glorified prison island, then that's fine by her. Anything beats a lifetime in the corrective labor camps.

Or an unceremonious end in a muddy ditch.

Seeing her bus approach in the distance Alexandra was about to make her way to the platform when she felt Lynch’s hand fall on her shoulder. Turning towards him, she half rolled her eyes as she expected to see that stupid smug smile plastered on his face again. Instead she was met by a stone cold mask. [color=#8080FF]“One final thing. As I said before, I won’t be accompanying you on the journey to the facility. But I will be keeping an eye out and regularly check up on you. And while I, for the sake of our shared acquaintance, have your best interests at heart, I should stress that my duty to society comes first. You’ll have to keep in mind that if you get involved into too much trouble there will be only one punishment waiting for you: Repatriation. Have I made myself clear?”[/color] 

Speaking of a sword of Damocles…

He knew exactly what repatriation would mean for her. It would have to be publicly sanctioned by the government, which of course meant that the government would learn of her existence in the first place. In other words, it would be a death sentence. With those words pervading her mind, the only thing Alexandra could manage was a meek nod.

Lynch’s lips curled back into a smile as he tapped her shoulder. [color=#8080FF]“Good girl. You best hurry along now, because your bus is almost here.”[/color] 

Nodding once more as a goodbye, Alexandra turned around to face the platform. She noticed that there was another girl making her way there, a redheaded girl who had a guitar case slung over her shoulder and wore an equally as eye-catching attire as Alexandra’s, but for completely different reasons. Most striking were the girls' tattoos, which made Alexandra conscious of her own back tattoo being mostly covered up by the telnyashka. She thought about commenting on them, trying to make a good first impression. That’s what Americans did, right? Talk unprompted to anyone? But the bus stopped in front of them before either of them could interact besides the customary nod, so any chance of small talk was lost. Besides, the girl was wearing headphones so it probably would’ve been wasted effort anyway.

Entering the bus, Alexandra was greeted by four other program inductees. Literally in the case of a small South Asian girl who almost as quickly as she said “Afternoon” returned back to her notebook. It prompted a frown from Alexandra, why start a conversation if you don’t plan on saying anything? Continuing on there was a Japanese girl who seemed to be bubbling with positive energy. Too much energy for Alexandra at the current time, so she walked past her while only acknowledging her with a curt nod. She quickly scanned the rest of the bus, trying to see which seat was the furthest removed from any of the other occupants, a boy who seemed to be more concerned with himself than his surroundings and another boy who seemed to be a handful for the guard behind him, before going for the one that suited her the best.

For most of the busride Alexandra stared absentmindedly out of the window, trying to take in the sights of San Francisco. Sometimes she noticed tents in some alleyway, or weird spikes below bridges or on ledges. Sometimes she saw the disheveled looking individuals who lived in those tents. It seemed that even in the supposed most wealthy and powerful country in the world there was still a massive inequality gap. She almost felt like she was back home in St. Petersburg.

Her train of thought got interrupted when the bus rocked from side to side. Looking up at the entrance Alexandra didn’t have to guess twice about who was responsible. A walking piece of concrete made his way down the bus, the noise of stone grinding on stone clearly audible to the rest of the inhabitants. Or at least so she thought, but no one seemed to really bat an eye. Except for the bus’ suspension, which groaned in protest at the sudden increase in weight.

Alexandra tried to let her mind wander off again, but it came to no avail as the next passenger boarded the bus. This time a girl entered who looked as if she had walked straight out of Norse mythology. The wings on her back were mesmerizing to look at, and it took Alexandra a few seconds to realize she was staring. Slightly embarrassed she quickly looked out the window again trying to take her mind off it.

It didn’t take long for her attention to snap back to the bus, as a small girl in a hoodie had just entered. While there was nothing particularly suspect about her except for maybe her hair color, the moment she touched the seat in front of Alexandra the girl in the hoodie had all her attention. [color=CC0000]“Черт Побери!”[/color] She hissed beneath her breath as she saw the girl turn the back of the seat into ice. The hoodie girl quickly took the seat behind Alexandra, who had a chill running down her spine for the rest of the trip.

Suddenly someone exclaimed a cry of incredulity. Looking down the bus, it wasn’t hard to see why someone would be shocked. An otter entered the bus. A fucking otter. Sure, there was a walking statue here and what basically amounted to a valkyrie. But the otter truly stole the cake of being the weirdest thing to enter this traveling carnival of freaks. Not like Alexandra had much room to judge, but at least her Meta-ability’s quirks weren’t visible to the naked eye.

The rest of the ride was, thankfully, uneventful. Having made their way to the ferry the group was split in two. Alexandra counted her blessings that she wasn’t in the group with the human anchor. As the ferry was in the process of making its second trip she took in the sights around the bay, being especially in awe at the Golden Gate Bridge. [color=CC0000]((“Dimusha would have loved this.”))[/color] she muttered softly to herself. She then shifted her attention to the island that came ever closer.

The infamous prison island of Alcatraz. Her new home.

They were greeted by a group of guards who confiscated their belongings to check for contraband. Alexandra handed over her duffle bag to one of the guards, who clearly underestimated the weight as it plopped down on the ground the moment she let it go. To Alexandra’s annoyance she also had to give up The Captain’s flask. [color=CC0000]“Is just water!”[/color] she almost yelled out for the second time today. Alas, no matter her protests, the flask had to go through the inspection. She gingerly handed the flask over to the guard, but not before looking him straight in the eyes. [color=CC0000]“No scratches, or I find you.”[/color]

Next the entire group was gathered in what seemed to be a sports court. They were greeted by the man who turned out to be the director of this facility. He held a short speech about how they had to act like a community and all that. It reminded her of what Lynch had been talking about too. Their duty to society. It was good enough for her, not overly long and it got the point across. She was ready to move on to whatever the director had planned next.

Unfortunately, not all of her peers seemed to be in agreement with her.

Michelangelo’s David had some choice words for the director, needlessly antagonizing the man who held all of their futures in the palm of his hands. Obviously amused, a girl who seemed like she walked straight out of a 1950s propaganda picture joined in alongside Bricks-for-brains. And to add even more fuel to the fire, the otter seemed to be making encouraging noises too.

[i][color=#8080FF]“You’ll have to keep in mind that if you get involved into too much trouble there will be only one punishment waiting for you: Repatriation.”[/color][/i]

Great. Wonderful even.

But as it turned out, none of these would risk getting her into trouble.

One of the late arrivals, a guy who looked worse for wear, suddenly plucked a feather from the winged girl and seemed to have turned it into a blade. The guards, already on edge due to the rebellious trio earlier, wasted no time in taking the guy down with tasers. This had a domino effect of the Japanese girl to suddenly completely disappear right in front of everyone’s eyes. She apologized immediately and wanted to explain something, but one particular guard seemed to have had enough and turned his pepper spray on the poor girl and the immediate surroundings. Surroundings that included Alexandra.

With the pepper spray burning in her eyes and a riot on the brink of breaking out within five minutes of setting foot on Alcatraz, there was only one word Alexandra that could summarize her feelings on whatever was happening:

[color=CC0000]“Блядь!”[/color]

Fortunately the Director stepped in before things escalated any further. He gave another speech which hopefully called everyone down and made the rebellious trio more amicable to him. Overall it was a pretty good speech.

Unfortunately the pepper spray kind of limited its effect on Alexandra. But then again, the Director can’t win them all.
[/indent][/color]