[center][color=39b54a]Jessie/Lightning Bug[/color]
Wonderland Bar, Bywater[/center]

What time was it? The sun was no help, the blackout curtains were closed and nothing was peeking through. The room was dark, aside from the LED paneling on the wall she had left on. Stabby was (Check the corners, make sure he's not hiding)... Not in the room, so it was after 2ish then. Amy was in her charging dock, but with the indicator LEDs taped over because seriously that is an annoying shade of blue, she couldn't tell where in her charging cycle the drone was. Where was...? Oh. Leigh and the boys were gone, must be on a delivery. After sundown then, and if Amy was still charging, it must be... 7ish?

[color=39b54a]"I need to fix my sleep schedule."[/color] Jessie muttered to herself, with absolutely no plan to fix it anytime soon. Caffeine and spite would keep her going until it didn't, then she'd sleep for 16 hours and start the cycle again. That was the way of the mad genius. Though, she had only passed out ten hours ago, why was she awake now...? 

The second fire truck blaring its siren as it passed answered her question. Cursing the cities efficient public response system, Jessie rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and sent a mental command to her Matrix (Her proud pet name for her custom computer, built from the ground up to be perfectly compatible with her brain in every way.) to wake up and check for client emails, drone updates, and breaking news. Only a moment went by as Jessie dug through her minifridge looking for leftover takeout before a story from the latter popped up on her homepage.

[color=39b54a]"A fire? I don't care about... Of course it's Variants. Damn Underground. Amy, remind me to blacklist the Underground after I finish their current orders!"[/color] Jessie snapped to the still sleeping pink drone. [color=39b54a]"But what do those jerks want out of this lab so badly they're willing to give us an even worse name to the media...?"[/color] She wondered out loud, sinking into her plush computer chair. 

Lightning Bug didn't need to wonder about things like that for long. Within a few minutes, she had opened up the public Nexus page for the lab, scouring its information like a sponge. One would be shocked at how much information secretive organizations would just leave in the open this way. Looked like whoever was in charge of monitoring the Nexus page was smarter than that though. Only some vague references to genetic testing. Maybe they were one of the labs NOVA used to test for Variant genes? Why would the Underground hit them though? It's not like NOVA doesn't keep a record of all that stuff, and use multiple labs regardless. There was more hiding here.

Fingers flashing across they keyboard, her mind beginning to run more on instinct than logical thought, Jessie reached out into the deeper pathways of the site. Login portals, that would be her way in. Brute-forcing a username and password would be nearly impossible, even for her, but there were other ways. She could, for instance, tell the security server that she had already given her credentials, but the password was wrong and she needed it reset. Using her technopathic powers to intercept the security email, Jessie copied the credentials into the portal, and was in. A slow eyebrow raised as Jessie began to scroll through the new information, looking for anything that would interest the pseudo-terrorists.

M.A.D. Jessie's eyes widened As she suddenly realized that this wasn't even close to the last layer of security. This was like... The fake permissions they would give to interns for data entry. There was so much more here to find, so much more to uncover, but all of it was buried under layers of advanced governmental security, state of the art stuff. Not that Jessie wouldn't be able to get through it, but what the hell was this lab doing with this type of security. They had to be associated with M.A.D. They were doing something crazy in there. Something they didn't want anyone to know about.

[color=ed145b]"Miss Jessie!"[/color]

[color=39b54a]"Jesus!"[/color] Jessie cried, nearly jumping out of her chair. Turning to see who was talking to her, she noticed the now-empty docking station for Amy, her personal drone assistant. She must have come out of her charge cycle at some point and Jessie hadn't noticed. [color=39b54a]"Right, sorry Amy. What is it? I'm kind of in the middle of something."[/color]

[color=ed145b]"Miss Alice is knocking! She is asking if you know what is going on? I presume she is talking about the fire trucks that have been passing by."[/color]

Jessie rubbed her eyes and nodded, pushing back from her desk and standing up. [color=39b54a]"That sounds about right... Thanks Amy. Try and get in touch with Leigh, make sure they're on their way back. I'll talk to Alice."[/color] Stepping through her messy kitchen, Jessie approached and unbolted her door, keying in the code to turn off her security system before she opened it up to see Alice, looking concerned. 

[color=39b54a]"Hey Alice. We're all fine here, everything's good. Looks like there's a lab some Variants set fire to in Mid, I'm looking into it now. Reports said a couple of them were headed in roughly this direction, so... Maybe not a bad idea to open later tonight?"[/color]

[center]-------------------------------------------

[color=92278f]Nik/Overcharge[/color]
Partially-renovated cafe, Bywater[/center]

Whistling a few notes to herself, Monika Graves began packing up her tools for the night. The nice thing about being an independent contractor was that she could make her own hours, so long as the job came in under budget and on time. Both things that this job had going for them so far. A few peaceful nights had been all Nik had needed to get ahead of schedule, and it really helped being an electrician who couldn't physically get electrocuted. So, when the news had broken over her radio, interrupting the custom playlist of niche metal that she had been listening to, and informed her of Variant activity heading towards her in Bywater, Nik had decided to call it a night an dhead out to her 'other' job.

Kicking her toolbox and radio behind some loose paneling, Nik zipped up her hoodie and tied her signature bandanna around her face. A quick check of her pockets revealed her stock of rubber bands to be full, and she slipped out the front facade of the currently-gutted cafe, locking the door quickly behind her before dashing off into the darkness. Absorbing every bit of wasted energy as her feet hit the pavement, Overcharge sprinted down the streets, following parallel to he sounds of sirens and trying to figure out where the thief would be heading. Ducking through alleys and jumping fences, Overcharge felt that she was getting close. She could see the flashing lights in the distance and head the distorted voices of officers through their loudspeakers and radios nearby. She'd have to stay out of sight if she wanted any action, Overcharge was still a vigilante at large after all. Ducking down another alley, she froze solid as she saw in front of her a woman covered in green scales. Obviously a Variant, and obviously trying to lose the cops. This was her. Silently wishing she had stocked up on some energy before diving headfirst into this situation, Overcharge grasped the small cylinder of her collapsed cane and stepped forward. 

[color=92278f]"Tonight hasn't gone great for you, has it?"[/color] Overcharge asked sarcastically, keeping some distance between her and the reptilian girl. [color=92278f]"Set fire to a lab, I assume you got separated from your partners, looks like you don't have anything to show for it, the cops are still on you, and now... You have to deal with me. Of course, it could be much more simple than that. You walk out there, hands up, and everyone walks away from tonight with their faces intact. Otherwise, we start dancing here and now."[/color] She said, a gleam in her eye. With a flick of her wrist, the cane unfolded, clicking into place as Overcharge prepared for a fight.