[hr][h3][color=a36209]Abraham Gene[/color][/h3][sub]Written in collaboration with [@Mr Allen J][/sub][hr]
[i][u]Somewhere outside Baybridge, Washington[/u][/i]

"Remain inconspicuous, but utilitarian."

That's what "they" said, "they", the "big mysterious father" that looks after his children - presumably with orbital missiles locked on your location should you double cross them, as the organization the man worked for didn't really seem like the type of people that would let him off with a slap on a wrist. They operated large scale, with just-as-large plans, and one had to wonder if they also had a just-as-large ego if they thought they could control the feng shui of the world. They even had to go and control what car he had to drive.

As they put it, "inconspicuous, but utilitarian." 

Abraham didn't know that meant he had to drive a 2013 Ford Taurus. You know what Ford meant? Let him break it down for you:

"Found On Roadside Dead." Abe muttered.

 F-O-R-D. Ford.
 
If Abe had any say in it, he'd be cruising in a luxury Benz or something. It was 2022 for crying out loud, he was wondering the whole time while driving the nine year old rust bucket if it would finally kick the can between New Mexico and the beaches of Washington... but if there was any one thing he had to give it credit for, it was the trunk space. He could hide a body in there. Well, not that he [i]did[/i], but nor that he [i]wouldn't[/i]. What he did have, though, was a false bottom hiding all of his toys; and you can bet that, despite his lack of love for the carriage of bottom-feeders, he's taken care of the car. Cleaning, waxing, taking off that horrible Ford decal on the front - he wasn't about to make it look like he was riding inside an old leather shoe.

The roadways were, for the most part, not well maintained. Not like they used to be, when all of the tax dollars could go to repairing them. Nowadays, it was all about security. The meta management organizations and the like, repairing homes and businesses from super power backlash, prison processing, legal processing - there wasn't enough money to go around to take care of the countrysides. The only thing that might have made the trip worthwhile were the sights. Washington was a beautiful state, he had to admit. Conifers, mountains, crags, lakes and rivers, and the way the sun glowed as it dipped at the horizon just gave the whole atmosphere a feeling of calm, which complimented the smell of pine in the chill air. He suspected that would all change as soon as he rolled into the city. He wasn't terribly upset about it. Abe preferred living urban.

"In the next half-mile, take right exit 155 onto Midway Avenue in Washington. Then, in the next two miles, you will meet your destination."

Abe smiled. Finally, this drive from hell was almost over.

"Siri," Abraham said. The phone beeped in response. "Take me to DOVE/RAVEN joint headquarters."

"Calculating..."

Abe reassessed the instructions to himself. First, apply for RAVEN. Word had it that a lot of good men died, so they must be [i]dying[/i] to get their hands on some more. Get it? Anyway, word also has it that since the great [i]Blackmore[/i] perished seven years back, an old acquaintence may have picked up where he left off. The next Blackmore son. Two, gain their trust. He had to be careful not to show off [i]too[/i] much, otherwise they might be suspicious of any prior training, and should that be the case, where he might have gotten it. He might be trained to mislead telepaths, but it might be a mental battle from there on - and they might have more than one. At the same time, show off just enough that they can recognize his value. Three, slowly leak information to his employers. RAVEN no doubt has very valuable intel and resources that Abe's employers would appreciate having. Keeping a tab on their activity can show them where and where not to look, if they haven't already found it themselves. Four... 

Infiltrate the Founding Family. Gather their information, destroy their resources, and eliminate his targets. Kill anybody that could compromise his mission.

[hr][u][i]DOVE/RAVEN Joint Headquarters[/i][/u]

It took another fifteen minutes of travel, between the city traffic and lights, and getting from one side of Baybridge to the other was no picnic. Abe already hated it here, reminding him a little too much of Boston. But, in the end, this is the kind of place Abe would know like the back of his hand. While he may not like it, he'll do well here... assuming he steered clear of the National Guard patrols, and had an exit plan in case they decided they decided to search all throughout his car and find something like, say, I don't know, an entire arsenal? One man can only hope. Rolling into the front parking lot of the joint headquarters, Abe eyed the security cameras littered about the place, counting at least a dozen with undoubtedly more lurking about. When he gets in, first things first, look for a back door. Every place has a blind spot, it was only a matter of finding it.

The builing itself was less impressive than Abe thought it would be. Though this was coming from a guy that used to be living it up. He opened up the door, and let his boots touch the pavement. From right there you can see that Abe doesn't too terribly humbly. The boots were a Danner Acadia brand, top of the line, with the only thing reportedly wrong with them is its price tag. He wore faded Vermani jeans, secured tightly with a fabric belt, and peculiarly, a fitted gray dress shirt by D&G. He figured that since this was technically a job interview, he might as well look professional from the waist up, yes? But considering how an assassin could be on his ass at any moment, or have some idiot trying to mug him, going for the whole suit and shoes would be utterly stupid. What they got ruined? Now that'd be the real shame. 

He took two lochs of his dreads and tied the whole head of hair back in a ponytail. As a gentle breeze blew across the city from the lake, a chill came over him. Perhaps he was spending too much time down south, if he couldn't get used to the cold anymore. He paced to the back of the car, opened the trunk, and withdrew his black wool peacoat. He paused for a moment, second guessing - then lifted up the false bottom on his car, being sure to block the view from any pedestrians and the cameras. There lay what looked to be an arsenal of weaponry, guns strewn across the bottom of the trunk of all sizes and purposes, and gun parts to better fit high caliber rifles in the small space, and strapped to the false bottom were an array of knives and blades and gadgets. He slowly took a Sig Sauer pocket pistol and placed it into the inside pocket of his coat. He closed the false bottom and then the trunk, and discreetly left the vehicle. As he walked across the parking lot, throwing his coat on, a woman caught his eye as she was coming out of her own car. He kept up the stare, because, well, the Lord did quite the fine work on this looker - woo! What a beauty!

Until she caught his stare, and Abe just tried to play it off with a charming smile and straightened his gaze back to the door.

The redhaired woman caught sight of the tall and mysterious man as she was merely getting out of her car to finish up some paperwork. The man was certainly mysterious... and Scarlet personally had an eye out for suspicious people ever since London was outed as a mole, and the Hound started [i]really[/i] putting pressure on the agency. 

She should report this.

Abe pushed open the front door of the building and confidently entered the foyer of the joint headquarters. It was a quaint little atmosphere they had here, though the most he could compliment was the woodwork on the furniture. He stared ahead at the desk, where sat a Spanish woman who looked to be about his own age. He paused to look at her with an appraising eye, before gently smiling in amusement. It appeared that these folks only hired the pretty ones. DOVE must be full of pushovers.

When he approached the desk, the man cleared his throat to catch her attention and promptly held his hands behind his back.

"Hello ma'am," Abe greeted. The slightest hint of his Boston accent was leaking through.

Tonight, it was Marianela Porras that was assigned to the front desk. Normally, no one would be showing up at this hour, but she was pleasantly surprised to be approached by a tall African-American man. She wasn't especially suspicious of him... but, what business does he have in the agency headquarters at this hour?

Well, there's a reason why they keep a shotgun under the front desk.

Marianela leaned in forward, and smiled at Abe. She was wearing a suit - with the DOVE symbol on her shoulder. "Hello, sir," She started off, cordial as always, "How can I help you?"

"Well, you see," Abe started, "I don't know your protocol for handling this type of thing, so I figure I might as well get right onto it - I want to enlist in RAVEN."

"Oh?" Marianela said, honestly surprised. "Oh, well, then fill out this form..." Marianela said as she quickly dug through a filing cabinet to produce a clipboard that had a form attached to it. The form had the usual questions (Such as name, age, and other personal questions). She put the form on the desk, and pushed it across and presented it to Abe, who eagerly took it into his hands to scan the questions quickly before writing anything down.

"So, when this is done," Abe said as he started writing down his name, "what comes next?"

"We are going to discuss what you want to do, your intentions for joining RAVEN, and then I'll set you up for an interview," Marianela explained. "After the interview, you will do a rather lengthy test that will help us gauge how well you preform in certain, and how much you know. Then after [i]that[/i] is the physical. If everything goes well, you'll have to wait a few days for us to process this, then you'll be placed in training."

"It's a good wait then." Abe sighed somberly. His sex? He got the impression that writing "yes please" wouldn't fly well. He filled in the circle next to male and continued on with the more in-depth information. Phone number, social security, mailing address - mailing address? Abe groaned.

"Eh... I just came from Massachusetts," Abe lied, "and coming here is one of the first things I did, so I haven't found a place to crash yet. Would it be fine if we just... withhold that for now?"

"For now, yes. Our agency is very understanding."

"That's good."

Abe started checking off questions down the list. Metahuman, yes or no - yes - what kind? Elemental. Criminal history? Flawless - Abe cracked a smile as he answered - past jobs? Uh... security detail. Bouncer. So on and so forth. Education? Milton Academy, with honors, and the scholarships he has been offered upon graduation, both in academia and sports. Even the Babson College accepted his letter, but Abe didn't follow through on the business career his father wanted him to follow. Academy 218. Huh. That was actually something he could bring up to this lovely young lady here, see if it can get him anywhere.

"Darlin', this reminds me - I've attended the 218 Academy some few years ago. It's been a while, but I wonder, can that get me anywhere or accelerate your processing?"

"Hmmm... That certainly will help, sir." Marianela said.

"Heeeeeeey!" A booming voice loudly announced as loud footsteps approached. When Abe turned his head, he recognized the man that he went to Academy 218 with. Donned in the most impressive armor RAVEN could buy. "Abe, you're [i]one[/i] person I never expected to see here - did you get arrested or something?"

Marianela rolled her eyes.

"Well, I'll be damned!" Abe declared as he marched forward to grab the RAVEN's hand. "Drake fucking Blackmore! Get real man, you don't think there ain't a soul alive that can keep up with me?"

Drake stuck out his hand for a good ol' friendly handshake.

"I hope you haven't lost your edge, yeah." Drake quickly replied. "Because it ain't like those metal arenas, there's fuckin' monsters out here, man"

Immediately the man, alarmed, whipped around with a hand raised to his mouth as he looked back at Marianela. "Ooooh, right, I'm supposed to be applying. I'm sorry ma'am, I didn't mean to be unprofessional!"

"It is okay, sir." Marianela said politely.

"Anyways, that form should be done." Abe told her, then looked again at Drake with a wink. "Give me two weeks, and by then you'll be reporting to [i]me.[/i]"

"You wish." Drake pointed at his badge. "I got seniority in this bitch."

Marianela then facepalmed... these two will be her coworkers soon!

"So, that next step!" Abe declared as he whipped around to face Marianela at the desk. "You wanted to talk about my future here or something? What I want, intentions, the touchy feely stuff?"

[i]'Because, chica, I can[/i] do [i]touchy feely.'[/i]

"Oh yes... I'd like to know your reasons behind joining RAVEN."

Drake leaned in and whispered.

"... This is the part where they try - and fail - to weed out the assholes." He snickered.

Abe smiled looking out the corner of his eyes to Drake, but he looked back at Marianela and he appeared a bit grimmer than before as he held his hands behind them. [i]'Straight to the point? Yeah... let's get straight to the point.'[/i]

"I want to help you destroy the Founding Family." Abe stated matter-of-factly.

Both Drake and Marianela looked at Abe.

The latter in particular was honestly curious as to [i]how[/i] Abe knows about the Family since that was a secret within the Agency - outside the Agency, the Hound and his Intimidation Unit were seemingly unaffiliated. That made the woman suspicious. "... And what do you know of this Family?"

"I have my reasons." Abe assured. He looked to the computer that was beside her. "If you're a federal organization, I'm assuming you've got the same kind of database? Look up a name that should have a case connected to it. Samuel Gene."

Abe then looked at Drake solemnly. "One thing I never told you was that I had a little brother."

Turning back to Marianela, Abe continued. "Case probably states that it was an internal affair, [i]a bodyguard gone rogue.[/i] While the police settled it at the first answer they found, I never left it alone. After ten years, I traced his background all the way to a group called the Founding Family. I guess they wanted to ransom my father, since I come from a wealthy household."

The only thing true about Abe's story was his brother's death, but there was no way to prove his story regarding the Family's connection being wrong as far as he was concerned. RAVEN should know better than anyone that the Family was elusive. Ten dedicated years might be enough to open forbidden doors. [i]'Not that those doors exist anywhere.'[/i]

While Abe was explaining, Marianela was focused on bringing up the case on her computer. She thoroughly examined it, and it was true that his brother was killed - but there wasn't any discernable ties between Samuel's death, and the Family. But, at the same time, Marianela knew that the Family were quite power hungry....

"I... understand." Marienela said.

She was a bit more convinced, but she would definitely have to put this down so they can keep an eye on Abe. Just to make sure he doesn't get blinded by his anger, and charge in....

"... I'm sorry to hear that, Abe." Drake somberly said, knowing how loss felt. There were no words to describe the grief he felt when the NEST Agents came to his home and told him that his father had died in the Verthaven Disaster.

[i]"Ten years."[/i] Abe repeated. "If you can help me settle this... I'm sorry, when I [i]help you[/i] take this Founding Family or whatever down, consider me in your debt. I'll be a RAVEN in spirit as well as in name."

"We'll do what we can...." Marianela said. "But, I'm also curious as to how you tracked them."

"I'm rich." Abe stated simply. "I can afford [i]many[/i] services - and you can learn a lot by common connections. That was a real complex network, let me tell you. I can also tell you that whatever database the Family has is probably a filing cabinent. Ain't nobody able to hack into pen and paper."

That wasn't the answer that Marianela was looking for...but, she was certain that, no matter how many questions she asks, he won't tell. She'll definitely have to key an eye on Abraham.

"Anyways..." Abe began, turning the current away from depressing waters, then clocking Drake in the shoulder with a giant fist. "Little old Korean Breeze here could give me a [i]shining recommendation[/i], couldn't he?"


Drake grinned as he turned to Marianela, leaned in real close and said, "... Hey, this guy's an asshole," Drake started, "Don't hire him."

Abe sighed and rolled his eyes. He joked, "And Drake was the poster boy for skinny jeans, yet here [i]he[/i] is."

"I promise I won't waste your time." He added with a wink.

"Heeeeey." Drake said in response. "But, yeah, Abe here is a great choice. The two of us can take the Hound on by ourselves! If only Val was here..." He mused.

Marianela was going to paraphrase Drake's recommendation only because she wants Drake to stop bugging her. "I'll make sure to put your recommendation on record..."

"Thank you very much, miss." Abe said smoothly. "Now! Since we got [i]that[/i] out of the way, I'm gonna scope the city out a little bit, maybe find a hotel to stay in for a while before I find a more permanant address. I'll swing by again tomorrow."

"Have a good one!" Drake said, bidding farewell. "Watch your back, out there!"

Abe kept on walking and exited through the front door with a smirk on his face. It was good fortune that Drake came when he did. Having an agent in the agency in his pocket will come in handy, especially one so... loyal. Step one was almost complete. The cards were in his hand, and all he had to do was play them.

[i]'Thank you Drake. You are far more useful than you think...'[/i]