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Gabriel tapped his foot as the dial tone sounded in his head, anxious to get over with a conversation he was certain he wasn’t going to enjoy. He sighed as he thought about Justine’s reaction to her friend’s capture- this was going to be a [i]long[/i] day. The other line suddenly picked up, and Justine answered. Gabriel took a deep breath. [color=teal][i]Here goes nothing...[/i]

“Justine, it’s Gabriel. Icarus, whatever… Listen. The people who kidnapped Rach got away. Some kind of portal, or something, I didn’t see clearly. Somehow they shorted out all my systems before they made a break for it. Anyway, I need your help in finding her. The people who have her are bad news, and I can’t just leave her in their hands.”[/color]

Over the phone came the wail of sirens, ambulance, with the warbling of police and fire. Justine stood off to the side, for the moment powered down  and in her plainclothes. Around her neck hung the lanyard with her press pass on it, and one finger was pressed to her ear, the phone was entertaining the other. “I got your text but by the time I got here LHPD was on-scene,[/color]” she said over the noise. “[color=MediumPurple] I’ve been trying to get some answers out of these guys but they just keep stonewalling me. I guess press credentials only go so far.[/color]” She took that moment to shift away from more of the noise. “[color=MediumPurple]Your tech is better than anything I’ve got. I’m not sure how much help I’ll be. - What can you tell me?[/color]” The words flowed quickly but calmly. Her mind was working overtime, but to find information, and solutions, rather than panicking about her friend. That’d come later. This had been the week from hell already. 

Gabe wasn’t high on her list of favorites by the tone of her voice, but for now… she certainly couldn’t afford to be hostile or turn him away. There were other players in the field. It wasn’t his fault. There had been unexpected variables. 

Gabriel took a breath, rubbing his temples with his fingers. [color=teal]”Not much, I admit. From what information I’ve been able to review so far, someone had infiltrated the convoy before we took off from the CDC. I know the client in question who likely perpetrated this little coup- GeneCo. Apparently they were the ones in possession of Racheli’s Phylactery before she got it, and now they want it back. The perpetrators were… unusual. From what I can infer, one of them was a metahuman who could project electronic interference- powerful stuff, too, enough to obfuscate even some of my sensors.”[/color] He paused for a moment before continuing, trying to describe the next part in a way that didn’t sound absolutely insane.

[color=teal]”The other one… well, there’s really no other way to describe this- she was some sort of… magician.”[/color] He rubbed the forehead of his helmet, exasperated. [color=teal]”She had these traps around the drop site that could bypass even my strongest metaphysical defenses like they weren’t even there. And the short-out I had at the very end of the confrontation, before I could get to Rach, might have been due to the same circumstances. I can overcome them, but not without a lot of effort. And they affect me a lot worse than normal meta powers. If that’s not magic, then…”[/color]

He paused again, rolling his eyes at his own floundering. [color=teal]”I know this all sounds stupid, but whatever that woman is capable of, it can shut me down if she nails me with it at a critical moment. But it doesn’t seem to affect other metahumans as much as it does me. Probably something to do with the way I perceive and my material make-up. What I need is backup for when I find them again, someone who isn’t going to flail around like an idiot when hit with these annoyances, and your powers are the closest I’ve seen to this kind of caliber. Can you do that for me?”[/color]

“[color=MediumPurple]Gene Co. You remember that Bozo at the apartment? I’ve been doing a little digging…  but the mask he had was from them,[/color]” Justine said quickly. “[color=MediumPurple]They’ve been doing metahuman experiments then? At least that would be my guess. Or something like it,[/color]” she said quickly, only to silently curse herself. Thena gian, she doubted Gene Co had any Echelon programs. “[color=MediumPurple]It does sound like you need a hand then,[/color]” she replied. Finally after a long beat of silence. “[color=MediumPurple]Are you alright? Thank you for calling me, and updating me.[/color]” 

“[color=MediumPurple]Where can I meet you or do you want me to hang by the phone?[/color]”

Gabriel was quiet for a moment before answering. [color=teal]”No, I’m not alright. I feel like a moron. I nearly got strangled to death by vines, and I don’t even need to breathe. I didn’t realize anything was wrong with the convoy until it was too late. I got shown up by two people who have less raw power in their whole bodies than I have in a single finger. But most of all, I’m scared. Not just what GeneCo wants to do with the device, but for Rach herself. These people… if they made that mask, too… if they’re willing to kill an innocent person just to make a point to me? Then they don’t have morals. They want that Phylactery, and they’ll try to kill Rach to get it. Moreover, they don’t have the capacity to merge with it like Rach and I do, which means it’ll revert back to viral form, most likely. Which, I don’t have to remind you, is a bad thing.”[/color]

Gabriel’s fingers drummed against his leg as he continued.

[color=teal]”These people are messing with things they have no understanding of. They think it’s another gun, a tool, a weapon they can sell and profit off of, like those gas masks. But it’s so much worse. Someone wielding a Phylactery, with the proper experience and application of power, could kill everyone on the planet, or at least a couple of continents. And they don’t care- they don’t care that they’ll likely have to kill Rach to get the Phylactery away from her. They don’t care that they’re trying to market what could literally be a doomsday device to people even less morals than them. And that terrifies me. It’s why most of my tech is under my own lock and key when it’s not already genetically coded to me. This stuff is more dangerous than anyone can imagine, even me.

“You’re at the CDC, yes? I can meet you there, or somewhere nearby. They’re probably looking for me, anyway- I’ve ignored a few calls.”[/color]

“[color=MediumPurple]Noooo, I’m at the site where things went sideways with the convoy. This place is a zoo right now,[/color]” she said. “[color=MediumPurple]I could sniff around over there but that’s likely to get me drawn into an investigation,[/color]” she replied. “[color=MediumPurple]Hang on you might lose me for a second.[/color]” Her steps carried her forward rapidly, only to turn into a darkened alley. With a slight thump she vanished as air rushed in to fill the space she vacated. She reappeared in a parking lot across town, standing just outside of her car. One hand fished her keys out and she slipped into the driver’s seat unnoticed as it was. The call had gone digital for a second due to the distortion in space and with the electromagnetic interference. But just as quickly it was resolved. Immediately the pandemonium was gone, and instead peace and quiet was left in it’s wake. 

“[color=MediumPurple]So if that tech is so powerful, why keep it? Why not destroy it,[/color]” she asked him. “[color=MediumPurple]lso, I hope you’ve secured this call, otherwise we’re talking about really dangerous stuff over open waves.[/color]” 

Gabriel snorted at Justine’s insinuation. [color=teal]”Who do you think you’re talking to? I had this line secured the moment I started to dial your number. Things can interfere, sure, but I’d like to shake the hand of anyone who can break through my failsafes. Anyway, I have destroyed it. Most of it, anyway, the things too dangerous to keep around, that aren’t coded to my genes or whatever it is I have that passes for it. But some of it, I can use, and not just to destroy. I have the career I have because I want to help people, and this technology can make that happen. Perfect prosthetics, bionics, implants, things that can give people back their lives. But I can’t release hardly any of it for fear of people like GeneCo using it to blow everyone to pieces for profit, or shits and giggles, or whatever. The fact that I build things for benign purposes doesn’t change the fact that someone else can turn it to unsavory purposes.

“I want to make the world a better place, Justine. Not just by punching criminals in the face, but through more legitimate means than vigilantism. Anyway, where are you now? I can still come to meet you, the CDC can wait.”[/color]

“[color=MediumPurple]It’s noble, but the human race has to grow up first,[/color]” she said quietly as she stared out her windshield. “[color=MediumPurple]Hell as a species we aren’t even housebroken yet.[/color]” After a moment she sighed. “[color=MediumPurple]I’m at the McDonald’s parking lot on east thirty-seventh and south Van Buren right now. It might be easier if I come your way.[/color]” Her voice dropped in pitch a little, and there was a weariness to it. Perhaps she was coming down out of more heightened state and the fatigue from stress was catching up to her? Or maybe it was something else. “[color=MediumPurple]Also, I was just asking to make sure my bases were covered. It was just a question. Can’t be too careful.[/color]” 

Gabriel blinked. [color=teal]”Er, right… sorry. Didn’t mean to come across as callously as I did. It’s just… been a long day. I don’t quite know where I am right now, so it’ll be easier if I’m still coming to you. I’m going to finish debriefing the people I came here with, and then I’ll head for your position shortly. Shouldn’t be too much longer for you to wait… assuming I can figure out where I am.”[/color] He paused momentarily, then continued. [color=teal]”And you’re right. Humanity does have a lot of growing up to do before I can make my dreams a reality. But that’s the beauty of no longer being entirely human, Justine- I have time to wait for them to be ready.

“I’ll let you know when I’m on my way, alright? Take care, Justine.”[/color]

“[color=MediumPurple]Perhaps you should be the change you’re waiting for. If you spend your time waiting it might never happen,[/color]” she said quietly, gently but she meant it. “[color=MediumPurple]Fine, I’ll stay put. At least you have my address and I can sponge off their wifi while I wait.[/color]”

[color=teal]”It’s why I do what I do, Justine. Fortunately for my ambitions, I’m somewhat of an impatient man, and apparent agelessness hasn’t tempered that much. But I need both of them, patience and ambition, to do anything. It’s why I’m a scientist.”[/color]

Another pause, then he cleared his throat. [color=teal]”Anyway, thanks for your help- I don’t think I can do this without you. Mostly because Rach trusts you a hell of a lot more than she trusts me. So… thanks again. I’ll talk to you soon.”[/color] And with that, he hung up, marvelling at how much better that conversation had gone compared to how he thought it would go.

As the line went dead, Justine heaved a sigh, only to lean back in her seat. Her left elbow was propped up on the top of the door panel, her fingers being run through her hair. “[color=MediumPurple]Wonderful,[/color]” she muttered to herself, her voice rebounding slightly oddly off of the glass surfaces in the car. How long was he going to take? She had no idea, and right now she had only a limited amount of information. Rach had been taken, by mysterious bad guys. Gene Co was in the mix. It was all spinning out of control now, wasn’t it?