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Eli's attention turned towards Natalie as she began to speak. Her eyes moved over Nat's face as she noted the expression on her face. It looked like a more intense and deep rooted hate. The same bloodlusted expression on her face as she fought the masked gunmen, but with a tone of revenge that made the bags under her eyes show through the makeup for a moment. So, was this the reason Natalie was such a sad soul?

She listened to Nat continue. Her heart sunk into her stomach and she felt her eyes brim with tears. And yet, her anger and determination only grew stronger. Eli pressed her lips together and swallowed, her eyes looking up to the ceiling of the ring to keep the tears at bay. She looked back in time to hear Amelia agree to the plan and nodded towards her.

Nic explained his ability, and Eli blinked as she processed the information. His spores were... creepy and invasive, but they would be extremely helpful on The Spire. It sounded like he could infect multiple officers and staff and then lead them to the spot they needed to go to. His mention of a hideout back on Earth was touching, but Eli felt her stomach twist every time someone mentioned plans for after their trip to the Spire. Escape pods... safe houses back home... Eli had hope to see them, of course, but... She didn't feel like they would.

Lynn's words definitely solidified that feeling. If they were caught on the Spire, they wouldn't make it back to the Ring. It would either be a fight for their lives, or a life spent in solitude. Probably a life spent in agony at the hands of the Spire's tech department or science division. She glanced at Natalie. There was no way Nat would submit to another life of needles. She'd go down fighting for her life. Lynn would too. Nic, she wasn't sure of. She couldn't imagine Keaton killing with her own hands. Even after Eli watched her put a few bullets into the Silent Court.

She heard Keaton mention Packet's name and turned her head towards her next. Before she could answer, Keaton made a point about telling Nic what their own abilities were. If Nic wasn't sure what their options were, he could make a wrong move in the Spire. Eli nodded in agreement and stood there as she waited for the group to explain.

Her heart constricted again. [i]Archie... You're no accident waiting to happen.[/i] She felt her throat tighten. She felt even more guilty for feeling so afraid of him. Of how she even had one thought about avoiding him for the rest of her time on the Promise. He looked like he was ready to give up. Like he had no other option. Yet Eli had a feeling that none of them really had a chance at living a long and safe life. Their lives were at stake every day no matter what their ability was. They were parahuman, and that put a target on their back.

Eli took a deep breath as Archie locked eyes with her. Before she could even explain, she sighed and tucked her hair behind her ear. It was still hard to look at him. Especially now. [color=E5D0FF]"I gave Packet an ultimatum before we ended our meeting. If I text him and he agrees, then he is with me-well, us, 100%. No matter what the consequences are. If he doesn't respond, or tells me to delete his number, we can't expect help from him."[/color]

[color=E5D0FF]"If he does agree to help, we just need to set a date a time. Whether that's tomorrow, or a week from now."[/color] She suddenly had an idea and she turned towards Nicolas. [color=E5D0FF]"If you were to infect some staff that travel between the ring and the Spire, we could gather intel while we wait."[/color]

As for the Keaton's earlier question, Eli wasn't sure if she even wanted to put Packet in that kind of position. [color=E5D0FF]"Keaton, I know that bringing him along would be extremely helpful... but... He's so young, and I feel like he has a chance to live on the Ring if he stays behind. I can definitely ask him if he will come with us, but I already feel guilty for putting him in this position in the first place. I'm not sure if I could focus in the Spire if I was worried about his safety too."[/color] She bit her lip and shrugged.

[color=E5D0FF]"Still... There's a chance he'll want to come."[/color] She looked around at them again. [color=E5D0FF]"It sounds like everyone is willing to take this risk. I'm... extremely grateful to have you all here with me."[/color] She glanced at Archie and nodded. [color=E5D0FF]"All of you."[/color]

[color=E5D0FF]"What happens next is that we plan which day to do this and prepare for it as much as we can. We can look up the old schematics of The Spire through the records. But only once, so that it isn't suspicious. I think Keaton has the best chance at analyzing them and figuring out the best places to search. Nic could infect as many staff as he could handle until then, just to figure out what the security is like over there. I'll message Packet and if he responds... well, we're going to the Spire."[/color]