[hr][hr][i][h1][color=blueviolet]Malik Jakane[/color], [color=ffe0bd]Rhea Harlow[/color], & Ryu Koizumi.[/h1] [sub](collaboration between [@Estylwen], [@Mr Allen J] and [@tsukune])[/sub][/i][hr][hider=Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX OST - Traverse Town][youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TF5qauxcAlI[/youtube][/hider][hr] [b][code]Somewhere in Baybridge...[/code][/b] Without Shizuka, Ryu was having a hard time commuting around Baybridge. Not just the language barrier (which was his main woe), but the public transport in America was truly as terrible as he had heard! Luckily for him, the older twin Haruka and the red-haired Holly did come to his rescue - they were kind enough to compile a list of the major residential areas in the city, with the addresses and some useful routes he could take, to help him get started. A mental note to himself: once he had completed his mission here, he would have to start learning and brushing up on his English. He really admired Shizuka, even if he was older than the silver-head. He could still clearly remember the time when they first met each other: not only was the squad surprised that the American Metahuman agency had sent a [i]teen[/i] to liaise with them (he was barely in his adulthood yet!), Shizuka was a talented and capable agent. Well, on the field he was someone you definitely wouldn't want to cross paths with. No matter how much he had claimed his intangibility was a lame power compared to the likes of the more offensive abilities, what made him such a formidable person was his astute mind: able to calmly assess the situation, aware of his own limitations and weaknesses, and use everything within his reach to his advantage and turn the tables around in his favor. Once the boy was off the field... Ryu couldn't help but chuckle to himself at the thought of it. Shizuka was just as pure (and weird) as his white hair when it was about social-emotional stuff. Even better that he was completely hopeless when dealing with girls and women, now that he was at the prime age to find a girlfriend or even a future wife. Such a waste of his good looks! As he wandered around Baybridge, he felt a strange current spike in the air; a quick check at the map in his hand told him that it came from Stronghold Plaza. By the time he had reached the place it was already destroyed, deserted... though he could still feel the queer currents emitting from the debris. Yes, he could differentiate three different electrical charges: one was the original current to generate power for the place, but the other two were foreign - and were also the cause of the outage here. He could even tell those two charges apart. To Ryu, the charge that different electrical Metahumans produced were unique entities to each of its own, just like the fingerprints of any normal humans. He pulled off a glove and absorbed the remnants of the two foreign charges into his body, to imprint the feeling inside him, and use them to find their original owners. ... ... Which had led him all the way to this house in Courtbridge, where the charges around this apartment was a perfect fit of those he had absorbed from Stronghold Plaza. [hr] [b][code]Courtbridge, Prince Ed-Field_[/code][/b] There wasn't any point in sitting around on a roof, smelling like sewer or not. Especially since they had goons after them. Even though Strongriver Plaza was [i]far[/i] away from Courtbridge, he didn't want to take the chance that somebody just [i]happened[/i] to look up, and had goons swarming him! Malik kept his hands in his pockets as he scrolled back over to Tanya's apartment. He was hoping that he could score that hose. With Rhea in tow, Malik turned the corner, and... Someone was at Tanya's door. Someone he didn't know. Malik was careful, he pushed his back up against the wall, and peered around the corner - throwing up his hand to stop Rhea. With the Family on him, he knew that it was only a [i]matter[/i] of time before they found him. But, Tanya? He felt tense... this man was Asian - but [i]anyone[/i] could be working for the Family. They had roped Marcelle, a French woman, in, they'd rope in just about anyone. But, he was about to ring the doorbell. Damn it, Tanya didn't deserve to be in any of this. He had to take a risk here. Just to keep Tanya out. "...Hey, friend," Malik said as he rounded the corner, getting close as he could. "How are you doing?" Rhea followed, eyes scanning their surroundings. Besides the Asian man, and a homeless person far down the block, the area was vacant. Lips twisted in thought, Rhea also watched the roofs. No one. This man appeared to be alone. To her knowledge, that wasn't how the Family worked - although, to be fair, she lacked experience with their covert agents. All she knew was that Makoto and Veronica showed up as a team of two when they blew her door in. Ryu was about to press the doorbell when he heard someone calling out to him. Turning his head to the source of the voice, he arched his brows, his eyes widened at who the speaker was. It was that African man in the security footage that Aislin had shown him! "Ah," he let out a surprised gasp at Malik. Then he recollected himself and said in an accented English, "I am looking for you!" He fumbled with his coat pocket, and pulled out the handwritten note that Aislin had given him. "We are..." He struggled to find the right word, but couldn't think of any except, "...Friends." He tugged at his scarf awkwardly, and gave Malik a sheepish grin. "Friends...?" Malik asked; the guy was shady. At least he didn't attack him right off the bat or something, which was what made Malik more receptive to the man. But, clearly he wasn't from around here - you know, he had heard an accent like that from [i]somewhere[/i]. Just couldn't put his finger on it. He looked at the note, and raised an eyebrow at the content... especially who it was from. He quickly handed it to Rhea. "...This is for you." As Rhea silently took the creased paper, her eyes curiously played over the mystery man. There was something off about his hair... Frizzy, like he had just rubbed his head with a wool sweater. And near every inch of him was covered - the scarf, gloves, everything. She factored in that it was autumn, but today was beautiful. Perhaps this man was a germaphobe? Slowly, she shifted her vision down, and examined the note. As moments passed, her jaw hung agape in astonishment. Letting Rhea to handle that, Malik had his full attention on the man. He crossed his arms... and raised an eyebrow at him. He was trying to appear big and strong. "So, if we're friends, mind tellin' me your name, sir?" Malik asked. "Name?" That was the only word Ryu could catch from the long string of gibberish this African guy had said to him; he was too busy trying to figure out what the man before him was saying to spare a thought for his intimidating body language. "Ah, yes. Koizumi Ryu," he replied, giving Malik a short bow. Then he looked up with a questioning look, gesturing an open gloved palm to the African - for his name. "Oh, yeah, me?" Malik said, "I'm Malik Jakane... It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Koizumi." He said his name surprisingly well... if only he realized that was his [i]last[/i] name. There was another question that Malik had. He raised a finger up into the air as he gave this Koizumi guy a curious look. "So, what I'm curious about is - how'd you find us?" He raised an eyebrow. "That's my friend Tanya's apartment right there... she isn't going to be happy if strange men start knockin' on her door if you know what I'm sayin'." "Malik," Ryu echoed the African's name, so that he could get it memorized. His gaze followed Malik's fingers up to the sky, then he looked back down at the man, shrugging. He felt a little frustrated, not being able to understand a word this guy was saying. "I no English," he said, shaking his head. Then he pointed at the paper in Rhea's hand. "Oh..." Malik raised an eyebrow as everything started making [i]so[/i] much more sense. "Um, then what language do you speak? I've been all over the world, so I know a little bit..." Then he realized he forgot who he was talking to. "What language?" he said, trying to be simple as possible without having to break out into interpretive dances. Ryu perked up at the question. "Japanese?" he asked, a hopeful note in his tone. Malik nodded his head with a smile... He'd been to Japan a few times. Not long enough to pick up anything major, mind you. But, he'd try his best. Try really, [i]really[/i] hard. "[i]I don't know a lot of Japanese.[/i]" Malik tried to communicate with him in Japanese. It was easier to talk to the restaurant owners around the tourist attractions because they were used to it. "[i]Sorry. Where did you find us?[/i]" He was reaching really hard into that language book of his... he should really head back to Japan. He wasn't even sure if he was using the right words. "[i]It's fine, I can understand you better now,[/i]" Ryu had to let out a sigh of relief. Finally someone else who could speak his language! "[i]Do you mean[/i] how [i]I found the two of you?[/i]" He smiled at them. "[i]Your powers lead me here.[/i]" "[i]Oh, yes.[/i]" It was ironic. Because Malik literally just traded one translation problem for another! Thankfully, he knew enough to make out bits and pieces of what Ryu had said. He mentioned something about "your powers," and Malik was smart enough to guess that he meant he literally found them through their powers. That was one question answered, but he had one more... "[i]Why?[/i]" Malik started off. "[i]Why are you looking for us?[/i]" "[i]We need your help to fight against the Family, and Polaris,[/i]" Ryu replied, making an extra effort to speak as slowly as he could - which was tough, since he was so used to talk real fast (i.e. the normal speed for natives) in Tokyo. "[i]Family, yeah...[/i] Polaris?" Malik poorly emulated what Ryu said. He had zero idea who Polaris was, but they sounded like trouble. "[i]And who are[/i] 'we?'" "[i]I'm only told to bring you two back to meet her friend--[/i]" he gestured at Rhea, "[i]--and they will explain everything to you. You'll need our help also to stand a chance against the Family and Polaris.[/i]" Malik shrugged... This was really, really weird, but he was hoping that this 'friend' of Rhea knew something... or could translate this guy, because Malik was lost in translation here! "[i]Okay...[/i]" He looked towards Rhea, and whispered (relieved he could finally speak English), "Hey, is that letter legit or not...? I'd like to know before Tanya comes out." Rhea held a hand to her mouth, a pained look in her eyes. She glanced at Malik briefly before reading the polished handwriting a third time, swallowing the lump in her throat. [quote][sub]Aegis, Remember that time after classes, when you got out of detention and went to vent on the bathroom mirror? I'd been looking for you, and found the entire mirror covered in angry scribbles. We talked. I wasn't upset, but your psyche worried me. Eventually, I convinced you to write one single line over top the entire thing. Do you remember what it was? '[i]After all is said and done, the world is still a beautiful place.[/i]' Or, something to that effect. I understand why you’re on your own now. It puts me to shame, seeing you out there fighting while I've peddled around the sidelines. Our differences need to be put aside, knowing the severity of things. Not just for us, but for each person in this world. I need your help. The man with this letter will lead you to where you need to be. Please trust me. CT[/sub][/quote] "It's..." She sighed, folding the note up. "...It's legit. I'd recognize the handwriting anywhere, and no one knows that story except one person. She even included the code names from our company, just to be thorough." Ryu appeared more at ease, but Rhea still felt the need to confirm. "Did Aislin Rose send you?" "Yes." Even if Ryu might not quite understand what this lady was saying (was she asking if the note was from Aislin?), he could still pick up the name. The lady seemed convinced, so the note really worked! He glanced at Malik the African... Now he was left with just one more obstacle to complete this quest. Rhea nodded, but Malik didn't appear to be fully on board. Her face held a heartening expression. "I've known Aislin for a long time - she's family. I don't know if she feels the same... but I trust her with my life." Rhea paused, hoping this last bit would win him over. "She's also better at sleuthing than I am. It's well, her job." The note crinkled in Rhea's hand as she held it up. "Aislin said to follow this guy. I can only assume it's to wherever she is, and I think we should at least check it out." "Er, well..." Malik said, throwing his hands behind his head. He didn't fully trust this man... but if this Aislin something-something was so trustworthy to Rhea, then Malik was behind her. "...Yeah, I'm with you." It wouldn't hurt just to look. "Ryu, we will follow you. But first," She smirked at Malik. "We need showers. And fresh clothes." "Ah, shower," Ryu said, an amused glint in his eyes as he rubbed a gloved finger under his nose. "Yes." He did wonder if American streets actually smelled that bad, but it turned out to be just the two of them. Did they fall into a pool of cow dungs or something? ...Maybe the US wasn't as bad as he had thought it would be. [hr][hr][i][h1][color=blueviolet]Malik Jakane[/color], [color=ffe0bd]Rhea Harlow[/color], [color=BCD6A2]Aislin Rose[/color], [color=salmon]Haruka[/color] & [color=cornflowerblue]Shizuka[/color] [color=salmon]Taka[/color][color=cornflowerblue]shiro[/color], Holly Hope, & Ryu Koizumi.[/h1][/i][hr][hider=Mobius Final Fantasy OST - Battle Tower ~the Pinnacle of the Void~][youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHrCReny-ns[/youtube][/hider][hr] [b][code]Little Seapond, Roseview_[/code][/b] Nervous. Aislin's stomach was in knots. When Shizuka informed the group Ryu was on his way with Rhea and Malik in tow, Aislin locked herself in the washroom. Not that she needed the facilities, but it was a good place to be undisturbed. Plopping down on the bath mat, she folded her legs in and began to breathe slow. The tension in her gut was unsettling. It was Rhea - no doubt. Having to meet with her was picking at Aislin's anxiety. She had no idea where their friendship stood, or if it still existed. After two years of silence, Aislin was unkind in her words when they met over the briefcase. Did she... make things worse? [i]Relax.[/i] Aislin drew in another slow breath. [i]This is bigger than your personal shit. Let it go.[/i] Focusing on the air passing through her lungs, Aislin managed to melt away the nerves. She sat silently for another ten minutes, listening to the occasional drip of water from the faucet. Relaxed and in the zone, Aislin scanned through the scraps of data she collected. Polaris, the Fire Spirit, and their messed-up cult. The shitstorm at the Liu's, the Founding Family, their [i]Machine[/i]. Everything was connected by a threaded needle, however, she failed to see the big picture. Perhaps... perhaps Rhea and her friend could shed some light on the subject. There was a knock at the front door, followed by the sound of shuffling footsteps. Aislin rose to her feet, splashed some cold water on her skin, and gave the mirror her best game face. [i]It's showtime.[/i] ... ... Shizuka was very glad that he had sent Akemi away to Japan. Well, if she was still here, she would definitely get quite a shock if she knew what kind of guests he had gathered in her home... He glanced at the faces of all the individuals who had settled down in the room after exchanging curt introductions, then at the gadgets and guns laid down neatly on the dining table. For one, these people weren't your normal guests. All of them were in this house for a very important meeting - one so secretive that had to be held under the nose of the Family dogs, and even their RAVEN comrades... because they couldn't risk losing their wild card status. They were the last line of defense against whatever insanity the Founding Family would soon be unleashing in Baybridge, and they were going to have to stop it in this city before the madness spread to the rest of the world. He also made the right decision to 'borrow' Ryu from Suzaku for this war. He knew how handy the Japanese agent's ability was (no matter how much Ryu had claimed to hate his power), but it still amazed him how that guy was able to locate and bring in their new allies so quickly, in just one day. [i]Good for us, because time is of essence here.[/i] Shizuka nodded to Aislin, to have her start off the briefing for Rhea and Malik; it was better for her to do the talking first due to her ties with Rhea. Aislin rested her hands on the table, a rueful smile on her face. "Rhea, Malik, I'm glad you could make it. I'll put it as plain as I can - shit's about to hit the fan." She paused to draw a diagram, pointing to it with a pencil. "There are two parties, one being the Founding Family, with control of the West. And Polaris, with control of the East. We have been collecting as much data as we can on these two groups, and have discovered some troubling news." She brought up a satellite image of Baybridge on her tablet, pushing it to the table's center. "The Family's developing a 'Machine'. What exactly it is, we don't know; but it's somewhere in this city, and I have a feeling it's nearing completion. This is the reason for the Hound's - who, in fact, works for the Family - obsession with scientists like Dr. Cross." Malik casually listened to what Aislin had to say. Polaris... he totally had zero idea of who they even were! But, if they're working together, that's bad news for everyone. But, they had a doomsday device? Je-sus. And Malik thought this secret agent bullshit couldn't get any weirder! He bet the man in charge was stroking a white cat! But yeah, while he wasn't exactly keen on this world-saving nonsense, who else was there? The authorities didn't seem that capable of handling such a threat. Rhea's fingers were steeped, tapping against her chin. She listened silently, face neutral. The group collected around her were an unlikely sort - the two Asians (besides Ryu) looked like siblings. Shizuka and Holly were both RAVEN - she had memorized the records. And Aislin herself, delivering the briefing. It was fitting for a spy. Rhea became interested the moment Aislin mentioned the Hound and its ties to the Family. That was a very special bit of information, and something Rhea nearly died to learn. But, where were they going with this? "Shizuka," Aislin glanced at the white-haired RAVEN. "Could you briefly go over the events that happened at the Liu's party?" Shizuka unfolded his arms and straightened up, leaning forward as he started off, "Just as Ai has said, the 'Machine' will soon be ready for the Family to use to it and terrorize this city - even the [i]whole world[/i] - now that they have the genius brain of Liu Jiao-Long to work on it." He paused a second before breaking the 'news'. "He was kidnapped by the Hound at his son's birthday party... which shows just how [i]desperate[/i] the Fags are about their doomsday device. His mum Biyu, who had ties with both the Fags and Polaris, also turned up at the party... but I don't know what her real motives are, and it's probably different from what the two cults want." To make things worse, helping the Zhaos (and in turn the Lius) had put himself on that old hag's killing list on top of the Family's. He wondered if the Zhaos would be able to pay back all the favors they had owed him, ever. Well, Malik heard of Jiao-Long. Hell, the two even came close to meeting! Unfortunately, the Jakane family, and the Liu family, couldn't be anymore distant. Malik would have loved to attend the party... but, hey, maybe once Malik had saved him, he could be invited to all the Liu parties! Heh... he was getting a little off-track here. The problem was that, with Jiao-Long, they could do whatever weirdo science experiment they want. Build this... Machine. "Exactly." Aislin nodded. "Polaris too, appears to have more than one agenda, not all of them in tandem with the Family. That fact does have me concerned, but fortunately for us, neither of the parties have anticipated [i]this[/i]." Her hands gestured to the room. "A group, unaffiliated with any organisation, working under the radar to throw a wrench in their plans." Aislin leaned forward, a glint in her eyes. "Now, my dear Holly's told me you two have taken up your own investigation. I'm rather intrigued as to what you've discovered, and I know all of us have a better chance at stopping the [i]Fags[/i] - good wording, Shizu - if we work together." She fell silent, head tilted. [i]They're interested, it's plainly written on their faces.[/i] A part of Malik wanted to chime in and say his real goals: which wasn't even fighting the Family at all, he just wanted to find Marcelle. Yet, another part of Malik knew that he should maybe [i]perhaps[/i] lend his assistance. He could save Marcelle, but what's it matter if the Family had destroyed the world? There were bigger things at stake here, but Malik still had his childhood friend at heart. First thing's first, maybe he should share Marcelle's logs with them. They probably weren't the vital, tide-changing, information that they wanted, but hey, even the smaller things can be useful. Rhea figured it would come to this, as her curiosity frequently created more problems. An innocent Tor search, to her safe house being destroyed and two assassins sweet-talking her with a gun. Malik saved her ass, so she thought it was noble to remain by his side until some amount of debt was repaid. Marcelle, however, was tangled up in a bigger web than either of them anticipated. She was, of course, still a high priority, but Rhea knew her decision fifteen seconds into the briefing. This wouldn't end with Marcelle - the world needed saving too. "Alright, I'm in," Malik said, standing straight. Rhea gave a short nod in agreement as Malik continued, "I have much to share with you... but, I should come out and say something, yes." He cleared his throat. "I didn't come to America with the intention of fighting the Family, and getting involved in their insanity. I am looking for a friend of mine, Marcelle Marou, a member of the French DGMHS..." Malik looked around them for their reactions. Aislin lifted her head. "Fair enough. Men die for lesser reasons, anyhow. This Marcelle - he's gone missing?" "[i]She[/i] went undercover in the Founding Family on behalf of that agency, and she has so much information on them... that she stored around the city in dead drops." Malik reached into his pockets, and pulled out the three USB drives that he and Rhea found throughout Baybridge. "There are at least a hundred... but many of them are missing, either found by the Family, or her association... all I have is four." "You mean..." Aislin's eyes lit up. "You have personal logs from someone on the inside? My God, imagine what they'd be worth..." He nodded his head. "...I don't even think they'll be useful." Shizuka raised an eyebrow at Malik. "Won't hurt to have a look at them first. If they're really that [i]useless[/i] as you say, why would the Fags and her organization be looking for them also?" That was followed with a nudge to his arm from Holly, a quiet warning to watch his sharp tongue and not intimidate their guests too much. Aislin's sly smile merely widened. "Well, hope ya' got a computer somewhere..." Malik said. "I have a laptop," Haruka chimed in, getting up from his chair before he ran up the stairs to his room. He was back at the table a couple of minutes later, even had the screen booted up and ready while coming down. "...Here." Malik stepped over, and put all the USB drives down. "Well, I'd start with this one." He pointed at the very first log that they had found - Marcelle's first log: [hider=Marcelle's Log One][quote][color=silver][i]"Marcelle's Log One: August Sixteenth. It's been one month since the Overload Crisis... and I am still on this foreign exchange program on behalf of the DGMHS. America isn't that bad, but I need to focus on the task at hand; my infiltration of the so called 'Founding Family'. I don't even know how I got involved in all of this, I wasn't even one of the top agents and I get pulled into an off by the DGSE to tell me about a lead they had found on the 'Beast' that destroyed Prague early on this year... "They stated that they had tracked it to this organization - they, they had something to do with the Beast. If they didn't create it, they had a hand in it. So, I was given a simple mission, gain the Family's trust, and infiltrate the Family on behalf of the French. I started out in the Family's French branch, and it was amazing how much of Europe they got under their thumb. "In America, I met a MISW agent that was on my side: Graham Morris. He told me that he wanted to destroy the Family before they completely take over Europe, but they had effectively taken over the British Military, including the MISW, so he didn't dare speak up. They sent him away on Foreign Exchange so he wouldn't connect the dots... and well, they didn't do it fast enough because he connected all the dots. "I've been working in their... Intimidation Unit as a spy for RAVEN. They just wanted me to leak some information to them, and I did. Then they asked me to kill a RAVEN off-duty... and oh God, it was the Hound himself giving me the order...[/i] in person[i].[/i] [i]"Despite his ridiculous name... seeing him up close sends chills down my spine. And the fact he could crush my spine didn't help. He's like a God damn devil. Nobody knows how to kill him. If he even[/i] can [i]be killed. After the job, I met two of my associate spies... Veronica Davis, and Makoto Koda - or more appropriately, the Terror and Onryo. "They told me we were 'partners in crime', and after the Asian lady grabbed me inappropriately, they told me I best not disappoint the Hound... that I '[/i]really[i] won't like him when he's disappointed'. "...It honestly sounded like they knew I was a mole. That's why I'm logging my progress against the Family. For Graham to recover and use as evidence should I die. "I don't know what shit I got myself into, but I hope I can get myself out of it. Just so I can see Malik again... Marcelle, out."[/i][/color][/quote][/hider] After Shizuka had translated the log to Ryu, he exchanged looks with the Japanese agent, then with Holly. To think that the Family had most of the European Metahuman agencies under their control beneath everyone's nose in just a few months! They even had a part in the Beast of Prague; the information in this log so far pretty much fell into his expectations, but it was worse than what he could have imagined... The term 'onryo' made the twins arch their eyebrows, while Ryu had a different reaction to it - he frowned at the name, but shook his head in the end without a word. Other than Malik, this Marcelle lady had mentioned another contact: a British agent, Graham. Shizuka turned his head to the African. "Have you also tried to find this 'Graham' guy?" "Well," Malik shrugged. "Not yet, we were too busy staying undercover - and besides, the Family could have their eyes on him, too." "It's a struggle to move around outside nowadays." Rhea snorted. Aislin's eyes snapped to her. [i]That's the first real thing she's said all night.[/i] "Right, a dead end." Shizuka let out a sigh. "Moving on to the next one... Number Nine, is it?" [hider=Marcelle's Log Nine][quote][color=silver][i]"Marcelle's Log Nine: It's been a few days since my encounter with the Blessed Three, and I managed to get some more information about them. Only from long time members that were kind enough to share this information with a newcomer... probably because it was all rumor and speculation, but it's stated that each of the Blessed Three survived some sort of experiment - or 'ritual' would be a better term - that only someone with 'perfect genes' can survive. I think that's Hitler-level foolishness... I'm not sure, but there's more to it. "Now, in my last log, I said that the Blessed Three have supreme control over the Family, but they have a council of advisers. No one has ever seen them in person, because they are only allowed to be seen by the Three. From what I've been told, they groom the Blessed Three into the egomaniacs they are today. Training them how to fight, giving them knowledge that even Ivy League scientists would kill for, and once they are ready, they give them advice from the sidelines. They're basically the elders of the Family, but I don't know how that selection process goes, to tell you the truth. "Which, has happened before - apparently there was a schism in the Family decades ago that left all but one of the Blessed Three dead. This one man had absolute control over the Family, but he did[/i] something[i]. He made some kind of discovery that would change the world should it get out. "...And it has me terrified. Marcelle out."[/i][/color][/quote][/hider] At the mention of 'ritual' and 'perfect genes', Holly cast a worried glance at the twins' brooding expressions. This sounded a lot like what Polaris would do... and might be something that was tested out on the boys' mother, which backfired and ruined their family life - their childhood. "As for this 'Blessed Three', only two out of the Three had shown up so far," Holly mused out loud. "Ezekiel Anagnos at the park incident, and Blake Schmidt at the party. We still don't know the identity of the last member." No one said another word as they went on to the next log, the eleventh: [hider=Marcelle's Log Eleven][quote][color=silver][i]"Marcelle's Log Eleven: It's been a little while since my last log, yes? I've been gathering information on the Family from the shadows, and I'm ready to make a report on something curious I've found. The so called Secretaries that the Blessed Three cart around. They have to be the most disturbing aspect of the Family's resources - someone that devout... it's horrifying. I didn't know what makes a Secretary a Secretary, until I asked around. "A few rumors bounced around the Intimidation Unit about the Secretaries. The one that caught my eye being that the Secretaries are men and women kidnapped and brainwashed to be the perfect servants for the Family. I did a little research... and took a risk to get close to one of them. A young brown-haired woman with green eyes... she was Ezekiel's Secretary, and the man almost had a fit before the Secretary calmed him down. "After doing some research, I learned that her name is Lauren Miller... a Canadian university student that just mysteriously disappeared a few years ago. After doing some more research, I found more missing people among the Secretaries' ranks. "I have come to the conclusion that, somehow, the Family has a way of brainwashing a human being and completely placing them under the Family's control. It's the only way... I've seen the Secretaries taking hits from the Blessed Three, and died smiling. It's impossible for any other option. "What's most disturbing is that I dug deep, and found that these Secretaries have been kidnapped men and women from all over the world. From America, to Africa, to Asia... it's disturbing. "But, my question is: can they apply this brainwashing to just anyone? And who else has been effectively mind controlled by the Family? I know they can't just be making servants. "I ponder these questions... but, for now, Marcelle out."[/i][/color][/quote][/hider] "[i]Brainwashing?[/i]" Shizuka had to exclaim, recalling the night he had a conflict with Jennifer over her missing hand-- [i]That's it![/i] He couldn't find any physical damage to her brain, so he had wondered if her constant headache was due to memory alteration... But this just made everything even worse by tenfold, that the Family had the power to put anyone's mind under their full control, turning them into their obedient puppets for whatever sick scheme they were cooking up. Then there was another thing: even if it was just for a quick check, what if he had accidentally messed up her already unstable mind further with his power? He raked a hand through his hair - he hated to deal with that edgy emo-girl who seriously needed to grow out of her pitiful bullshit, but he didn't want to be held responsible for an accident that nobody could ever expect to happen (namely, the wrath from those two female [i]friends[/i] of his). Still... why would the Family go so far to cut off her hand and rope her into this mind-control game? "I'll be honest, I didn't see that one coming." Aislin said, scribbling a note on her paper. "If we had a Cerebral-type in our midst we'd be able to counter, or at least detect such tampering." "I'm resistant to cerebral abilities," Shizuka said, reclining back into his chair, feeling somewhat drained all of a sudden. "But I dunno how far my power can break through such mind-control technique without breaking the person's mind completely. So yeah, it's better that we find other ways to reverse the brainwashing effect, and hopefully it's the Meta who does all the mind-wiping and stuff." Even if he would never consider Jennifer a friend, he knew his stupid twin would likely put himself between them and die for that girl - and he couldn't let that happen. Also, if the Family had more brainwashed innocent bystanders like the regen freak stationed everywhere in this city... this war could get extremely ugly. Aislin crinkled her nose. "God... Mind-wiping. Although it's excellent you're resistant, Shizu, we may have to start being meticulous with diaries, documenting memories. And I mean - how does one factor memory loss into a battle plan?" Blowing out a huff of frustrated air, Aislin pushed away from the table and began rooting through the pantry. Snacks were an excellent distraction, and she managed to find an unopened box of cookies. The twins' house was sure loaded with tasty munchies. Haruka caught the conflicted expression on his twin's face, which made him frown at his younger counterpart. He understood the nature of Shizuka's position and job in RAVEN, but he couldn't help wondering just how much classified secrets his brother was keeping in that head of his. He continued to mull over Shizuka's strange reaction to the brainwashing part as he plugged the last log into the laptop: [hider=Marcelle's Log Seventeen][quote][color=silver][i]"Marcelle's Log Seventeen: It's been a few months since I've arrived here, and I know so much about the Family. I've killed so many people... had sex with so many people... just to earn their trust. Oh my God. It's getting tougher and tougher to keep this going. I'm... just a low-level agent. I joined the DGMHS to help people, not be the Family's toy. I just... I just want to stop, but I have to keep going. I'm in too deep to just give up... and... they know my own family in Europe. They'll kill them, and all my friends. So, I must fight until the Family is destroyed. "But, I've made major progress in my case with the Beast of Prague... apparently, the Family has such a control over the Czech Republic that they just needed the President to play along. The Family are an arrogant lot. Instead of just assassinating him and replacing him, they attempted to intimidate him into submission. When he refused, they threatened his cities. They told him something 'awful' will happen if he continues to refuse... he continued to refuse, then the Family dropped the Beast onto Prague. "What's worse is that... they have the ability to turn any Metahuman into this super-powered giant. A literal WMD at their fingertips should they want to employ it. I don't know what it is... but, they said something about creating some of it in one of their labs in Asia. "Marcelle out."[/i][/color][/quote][/hider] "Well," Aislin arched a brow, eyeing her cookie before devouring it. "That confirms your suspicion, Holly. The Fags were definitely behind Prague. A demonstration of power, perhaps." "About that..." Holly gave Shizuka a quick look before turning her attention back to Aislin. "We only had suspicions and wasn't hundred-percent sure, but to think that it's truly the case..." She pursed her lips, thinking if she should say what she had in mind. "...I don't know if the creation of Prague's Beast is more than just a demonstration of power; what if it's actually one of those 'failed' experiments to perfect the Machine they have been working on? To power up Metahumans better without turning any of us into an uncontrollable killing machine as the Beast?" "Hmm. Let's consider for a moment the 'Machine' is, in fact, designed to power up Metas." Aislin mused, playing with a cookie on the table. "What does the Family gain from making their enemies stronger? Unless, perhaps, this is a varying power-up. Those on the white list become gods, whereas all other power is increased marginally. Or~! Maybe the Family has high level metas, and the power-up has the same level of strength. Since they're so strong already, they're the only ones who become gods." She snickered. "That is, assuming this is a not-so-evil 'Machine'. I'm still under the impression it would cause a massive loss of life, if anything." "Yeah," Haruka agreed with Aislin. "Too much power is never a good thing... especially in the wrong hands." "I lost some friends in Prague," Malik mused as he scratched the back of his neck. "I hate to see what that would be like worldwide." Rhea's mouth curled. "...I'm sorry to hear that." With ease, she pictured a barren land with roaming titans. [i]It'd be hell.[/i] "[i]As for the part about labs in Asia...[/i]" Ryu finally spoke up after being silent throughout the playback of the four logs, giving Shizuka a nod as the younger man translated his words to the rest of the group. "[i]This is where I can come in.[/i]" He pulled out his own thumbdrive from his coat pocket and plugged it into the laptop, opening up a file that displayed a map of China on the screen, with several markings on the image. "[i]I've been doing some intelligence work for him--[/i]" he titled his head at the white-haired agent, "[i]--and pinpointed some locations with an unusual amount of electrical power being centralized in these places. I've also gathered info that a number of these sites were only set up in the past few months, and they were marked as high security areas by the government, out of bounds to anyone. There had been cases of curious individuals who trespassed these places - they were either caught and never heard of again, or shot on sight if they had tried to resist.[/i]" He shrugged at the questioning looks he had received from the rest. "[i]I can't confirm if they are indeed the labs mentioned in the log or some other illegal facilities, but the timing is too much of a coincidence.[/i]" Bending forward to the laptop, he zoomed in the map to a certain city: Suilan. "[i]However, this particular hotspot is the most curious one of all. While electrical power in the other locations were mainly centered around the base, this one covers the whole city. And I mean a much higher concentration than its neighboring towns and cities.[/i]" "I knew the Chinese government was in this shit," Shizuka muttered. "But to go as far as sacrificing an [i]entire[/i] city..." Prague wouldn't be the last city to perish under the Family's insanity. "I wonder what happens when they flick the 'ON' switch." Aislin held a finger thoughtfully on her lips. "Seeing as only 'some of it' - meaning the Beast - was created in their lab..." Shizuka stood up, clapping his hands together. "Alright, boys and girls, we've made a bit of progress with the intel exchanged so far, but until we can locate the Machine and find out exactly what the hell it is, we still have more sleuthing work to do." He scribbled down some names on a piece of blank paper with a black marker, before he divided the names into sections: Malik with Rhea, Aislin with Holly, and himself with Ryu. "First, we can assist you two in finding more Marcelle's logs to give us further insights on the Family, and hopefully more information on how we can deal with those Blessed Bitches," he began, pulling the brownie spy's tablet and booting up the map of Baybridge. Aislin watched him carefully, an eye on the tablet. "You two sure have a way to get the IU dogs hot on your tails every time both of you went out to search--" Shizuka rolled his eyes at Malik and Rhea, "--so it's better for us to go in pairs, and we can watch out for each other's back." "I would recommend Malik and I either work at night or get some convincing disguises. Interactions with the Family should be avoided at this point; we're hot on the list." Rhea said. "And perfect as bait to keep the IU puppies occupied while the rest of us are free to get the logs right under their nose," Shizuka added after Rhea in a dry tone, to which she clicked her tongue disdainfully. The silver-head then looked up from the paper and stared at Malik. "We'll need you to provide us with a list of places where the logs are most likely hidden at, then split them up by the districts to make the search more efficient." "Well," Malik shrugged as he quickly produced a piece of paper out of his pocket. "My friend Marcelle was sending someone else a bunch of longitude-latitude coordinates." He put the paper on the table, and hastily written on it were the locations of all the logs. Many of the places he already looked were crossed off. "It was a pain in the ass to decode em' on just usin' my phone's app, but you'll find some use in them." Malik grinned. Nodding at Malik, Shizuka went on with the plan, "On top of digging for more logs, we can also scout around the area for possible locations the Machine may be hidden at the same time. The Fire Spirit's appearance clearly tells us that the Fags will be rolling out the Machine and starting their terror fest anytime soon, so we're pretty much racing against time here." "What if the Fire Spirit approaches either of you again?" Aislin asked. "I'm gambling on her [i]love[/i] for me and Haru not to interfere with our tasks here," Shizuka grimaced in disgust as he spoke. "You heard her over the wire at the stakeout just now - as long as we're still alive and kicking at the end of all this shitstorm, we don't need to worry too much about her for now." "True enough." Aislin dipped her head. "Beyond that, I think our strategy is sound." All this sounded like a good plan... with one problem. Haruka had to say something. "...What about me?" "Contact Jennifer, and set up a meeting with her," was his twin's reply. Haruka furrowed his brows at the suggestion. "What has happened to her?" "You've heard the log about brainwashing just now," Shizuka said in a deadpan tone. "I met her last night with the rest of the old Vert gang... She was attacked by someone from the Family, and they cut off her hand for reasons I don't know. They went as far as altering her memory of the assault so we couldn't trace back to them, but the power probably didn't work too well on her, giving her constant headache each time we questioned her about her missing hand." Haruka could only respond with a horrified look, and it was later replaced by anger. Jennifer had suffered more than enough since the Verthaven disaster, so why couldn't these evil bastards just leave her alone? "After Lihua gave her a lecture and got her to open up to us, I used my power to check her head for any physical injury just in case, but I couldn't find any," Shizuka continued in the same toneless drawl. "But I dunno if my ability might've unknowingly worsened her condition. That's why I said not to rely on my intangibility to snap her out of the mind control." "Even so..." Haruka turned his head, looking away from the other comrades gathered in the room. "What do you expect me to do after meeting her?" She might be beyond recognition from the girl he had known back at Verthaven, or even that brief chit-chat with her at the cafe. He wondered if she would want to see him again... "To confirm a few things," Shizuka's tone became more business-like. "Even if her emotional state is a complete wreck, it's only a matter of time she'll notice something's wrong with her memories, and go out to search for the truth, [i]alone[/i]." He let out a snort - bad habits just couldn't be changed overnight. He knew that better than anyone. "Talk to her and see how much she's aware of her condition; if possible, try to figure out how the mind-control thing works on her." "Who's this Jennifer?" Malik scratched the side of his head. "Well, whoeva' she is, I just hope we can help her..." Malik hung his head for a moment as he thought about it. "But, it seems to me that the best help we can offer her - and the whole world for that matter - is destroying the Founding Family." "An old acquaintance whom I really don't want to become [i]sworn enemies[/i] with," Shizuka responded to Malik quietly, then his sharp eyes gave one last sweep at the grim faces of the group in the room. "If there're no more questions..." Aislin's hand shot up. "Me~! It's not a question, but I'm thinking this lovely house is getting too crammed." She smiled heroically. "I'd like to offer my sweet home as a crash pad, hideout place~" "Good idea; besides, I don't want my aunt to come back and kill me for destroying her home..." Shizuka rubbed the back of his neck, tilting his head slightly as he looked at Aislin. "But are you sure about using your house as our little 'base'?" "Yes, it's a safe house after all. And more of a luxury suite, but there'll easily be space for everyone." She said, pointing to the map. "Right there in Lower South Royer Town." Earning a low whistle of approval from the silver-head. "Anyway, let's get moving," Shizuka said as he handed out the decoded coordinates to everyone (save for Haruka), to end off the meeting. "We really don't have all day." Malik grinned. "...I barely know you people, and I have half a clue as to what's even going on anymore," Malik started off. "Mind control, disasters, machines, labs, and all sorts of insanity... but, with ya'll at my side, I know we can get to bottom of this, and find out what happened to Marcelle."