[h2]Kaitiaki HQ, New Zealand[/h2] [h2][color=lightblue]Skye Rosalind Lyons[/color][/h2] [h2]Dinner is Served[/h2] The team raised lots of valid points, their commentary revealing that well, they all certainly had a bone to pick with Pavel too. That was good, Skye thought to herself. Who wouldn't hate on a billionaire frat bro. [@LadyAmber] [color=lightblue] "That could be something of a lead. Though hopefully it doesn't lead to us having to go to space to dismantle those things...for a starter, I don't think we have a rocketry programme yet!" [/color] Skye chimed back with a little sarcasm, flipping a burger, having a moment to ponder it over, knowing what she knew roughly about the market for such communications. After all, if Pavel was using it for that purpose too, all sorts of shenanigans could be going on, and hacking their comms could be on. [color=lightblue] "Though it's a good point. There has to be some kind of ground station, and no doubt there's more intel on that network. It might open the door for us, especially if the data is on one of those satellites and we can get it down to us if we can't visit ourselves." [/color] Skye added, knowing it might be something to circle around to, but in the main, it gave them something to look for on the next operation. Pavel was a vested target, purely as there was possible association to Artemis, but the fact his fingers were on this meant something else had to be going on. Skye wanted answers. And she'd get them, first by asking, then by telling, and only then, maybe by doing something more than that. [@BigPapaBelial] It didn't sound like much fun wither with what Freya was saying. Once again, Skye reminded herself that the giant could probably have done far worse, and in some ways, she hoped for Pavel and his memory's sake... [color=lightblue] "Sounds like a method in. And damn....well, he might be rich but he can't be too intelligent if he thought that would end well. Jesus, if your brother found out, he'd be turned into some wee Spam alright."[/color] Skye remarked, sarcastically as she knew full well the score of Freya's family- once again, she wasn't the only one that was that tall. And freakishly strong. And have a waistline like she did...Skye couldn't deny, it was quite something. [color=lightblue] "Oh, and for dresswear, it's gotta be the former. If they're craning their necks, it's all eyes on you, girl, near, far, wherever you are...keeps you professiona tool and reminds you you're not to be fucked with. Whatever the hell they feed you back home, remind me to try it sometime, Freya!"[/color] Skye remarked, cheerfully than prior, knowing Freya would hopefully take it well, the other redhead of the team making Skye sometimes feel like a mini-me in comparison. Well, with an accent of her own, it made her stick out at least, somewhat? [color=lightblue] "Your invite should work. I guess it'll be guarding you, and in some ways, it keeps the attention directed at you. That will come in handy, aye."[/color] Freya was certainly going to be of help here- her company and her reputation would make her a glowing target in her suit, but no doubt, that was the point. You didn't hide a giant. You made them front and centre, and in the complete opposite of working in espionage, you put someone like Freya out like a parade float, for all to see. So that well, Skye and the others were in the shadows. [@Awesomoman64] Helping out with the hallumi, Skye responded in turn to Xan, hearing out his story, and his possible approach method. [color=lightblue] "And I thought he was just a regular an asshole....sounds rough, Xan. Glad to hear I don't need to give you all more motivation, team."[/color] Skye responsed to Xan, then more generally to the group, as she finished up helping him out, finding a set of plates. [color=lightblue] "Sounds like something good, Xander. Keep me informed what you're up for doing."[/color] She retorted back, knowing him and Sam were more likely than not going to be spending plenty of time reassembling their electronics. Having lost it in the buggies, they'd need some bits to work on, and knowing the resourcefulness of Tahlia and their own, they'd be back in no time. [@PerfectThought] Last but not least, the other Brit had stayed quiet, Stafford probably taking his time to absorb the conversation, and the goings on around here. Of course, he'd be back to his usual soon enough, given the injury though, he wasn't probably giving shit today. She almost missed that, almost. [color=lightblue] "Possibly. But if not, keep your head on a swivel. I'll appreciate getting a whisky with you there, mate. And you'll get some up close action too." [/color] Skye warmly commented across to him, getting the table set, turning to the team in general now, knowing they'd all be wondering what next. [color=lightblue] "Well.....that's no' bad. Eat up, team. We got some healing and work to do. Sounds like a few of us might have invites then. I'll get to work on a more concise extraction method tomorrow. In the meantime, install any of your upgrades, get back onto recovery, start figuring out your method in, out, and what we have on the line. We'll be there soon enough. For now, eat up, because that looks delish!" [/color] Skye called out, for a moment the redhead of the team enjoying this little atmosphere, this evening, and each and every face that was here. ---- [h2]Thistle in the Rough The Next Day [/h2] [img]https://www.tripsavvy.com/thmb/zEfoSwWHGIbb_KP3s2yU1f8dcmk=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/dawn--mckenzie-cove--langs-beach--hen-and-chicken-island-on-horizon--north-island--new-zealand-141862843-5a4bbfd6aad52b00365a9694.jpg[/img] The next day came as a slightly better one for Skye Lyons, given her ribs weren't hurting so much, either from the light use of painkillers, or sheer bloody mindedness. Some did have to ponder if Skye was just some sort of machine, but there wasn't much more to it than the fact she just harnessed, took life by the core. An introspective view was that it made her feel somewhat alive, and by this point, she was so accustomed to it, not doing it felt even weirder. Skye didn't muck about. Same thing as usual, porridge oats, fruit, cranberry juice, and a shot of a blended smoothie from the kitchen, followed by the early morning briefing, it was a nice little routine to have as the sun barely rose. The kind that sort of gave her a basis, because it was a job after all. A full time one, with no holidays, but a hell of a lot of perks. Like how right now, she was free to act how she needed to. The team were in the same boat, given they were awaiting the date of the party, and had jobs to do in the interim. And it was the a slightly varied routine for Skye, a different route but still the same. Skye was back out and with the black and orange triathlon suit she had on over her athletic and weathered frame, she looked slick, the mark of efficiency. It may have seemed she embraced some sort of luxury rather than doing this in usual combat conditions, but Skye didn't need that every day. Nah, today was about getting back on the horse. Irrespective of what the doctor's orders were, Skye would allow herself to break that. She may have been a stickler for the rules, but what fun were they if you couldn't break them? It made running a team hard as hell, that was for sure. A swim kicked things off, with the dawn chorus of birds chirping and the raging sea giving Skye all she could, drowning her red hair into the salt water, the muscles burning and aching, but coming back into posterity once she'd kicked off the first two hundred meters. A kilometer would do, but against the raging sea, it was like trying to fight Posideon throwing bricks at her shoulders every few seconds once she was outside the reach of the bay and into more open water, swimming to the next. She didn't care. It just made things more entertaining, and after all, she wanted this to be a reminder to her she wasn't going to let the idea of ribs hold her back. The others may have rested up, but she wasn't going to let go. So coming off the swim, the next step was the bike ride of this little biathlon sans weapons, with a full face crash helmet attached to the carbon-black bars of the parked bicycle. Left back down by the small airfield that the team had on the far side of the bay, her mountain bike was a formidable little tool, carbon-framed and with a rear shock to boot, but still, very human powered and tricky to use on the trails of the island. On the trails around the place, Skye could put it through its paces, not needing engines or electricity to pull the bike up the hundred meter hills that formed the spine of their home, the jungle and fine tracks being a good place. With all the uphill, Skye had to ration the energy she had left, the burn now setting in, her heartrate rushing past 160 from pushing on the slippery, rooty and rocky climb in the foliage, the little hiking trails that shouldn't have taken a bike still being put to use by her. Every part of her body felt like it was on fire, screaming, but the glimpse of orange and black was a blur in the early morning paths. Rubber skidded on dirt, and the sight of Skye pushing through her ribs kicking back was visible and very much audible. These moments mattered. They reminded her of being alive, and directed her thoughts into something more positive than the dwelling thoughts she always would circle over again sometimes. Showing any weakness to anyone in the team was going to be the end of her- at least, it would be, and sometimes just pushing into that physical endurance was like it made it all fade, like nothing mattered at all, and it pushed her to be more. It was being stubborn, and if being in control that mattered, if not her team then very much her own mind felt good. Kept her able to resist thinking about some of the past. Her mum's state, and her dad's death. A break with the past had worked, but it always felt like she had to run even harder to just put things between her and that. Literally go to the antipode of the world to put that between them, and well, turn inside out. Become some arbiter of good and immerse herself into a stress that completely wiped the past clean out. It felt hard but then again, she had no reason to doubt herself when she pushed. And Xan was right, when she spoke to him a while back. She had to relax. Let things in. But Skye knew that was going to take losing a part of her she wasn't ready for yet. Maybe the tectonic plates would move, but that was going to take time. On that thought, Skye stopped at the top of the ridgeline, looking down at the dawn sky, and the Homestead on the horizon. The expansive view, the wind blowing her sodden hair back, the feeling of sweat in every orifice and the near echoing of her heart returning down to a low, thumping rest rate. Her ribs hurt, but not as much as it would to not make the most of this moment, right here, right now. Being alive in it all. Final stretch now. And it was downhill, a rush that pushed her hard, as Skye whipped the mountain bike through the undulating terrain, catching air over a boulder and leaping the bike through the track, giggling and grinning with pride, the endorphin rush of this not dying yet. Sure, it didn't beat getting shot at, wingsuiting into a North Korean radar site, or all manner of stupid shit she'd done before, but it was something new, and novelty was always fun. If ever Skye enjoyed moments like these, it was odd to see her be somewhat at ease with herself, completely hooked on that high, and it was clear whatever that high was, it was from being absolutely on that ragged edge. She liked learning new things, and this was her most recent- integrating it into her routine had certainly been paying dividends, and as she made her way to the bottom of the trail, before the team had probably even woken up, she'd gotten her fill. Mountain bike parked in the hallway, she got a morning shower in, and back into her more usual casual clothing, got to work on making the round of work she had ahead. The only thing that came close was skydiving, but given her state and the fact they had work to do, she thought better of that. --- With her morning madness out of the way, Skye returned inside the intelligence centre down in the support complex, the Israeli signals intelligence operative hunched over his desk, four monitors plus another to his side revealing he was deep in flow, but Skye was having none of his indifference. [color=lightblue] "Morning!"[/color] Skye cheerily greeted him, the redhead wearing a crimson red t-shirt, complimenting her red ponytail, as well as her usual cargo pants and trainers, her stance one of warmth yet an underlying air of authority, one that never really left despite how casual she may have come across. [color=OrangeRed] "Someone's been for a run. Against doctor's orders. Tut tut, Skye."[/color] Raph sarcastically remarked, the dry Israeli replying, only then breaking from the screen. [color=lightblue] "Oh, way more stupid' tha' that. I don't know when to stop. So keep that on the down low, yeah?"[/color] [color=OrangeRed] "Well, I'm sure I can keep that secret. All good, chief?" [/color] [color=lightblue] "Somewhat normal. Have you started to look at what I sent across to you?"[/color] Skye enquired, breaking the chat to another subject quickly, not wanting to fuck around, given she knew Raph wasn't going to keep the smalltalk going without being more awkward. [color=OrangeRed] "It looks positive. Certainly got some options to look at, the party itself looks like a hell of an event. He doesn't come out of his shell often, and while the security is tight, it's not impossible to beat. Plenty of spots you can get him one on one. I assume you have a plan for that."[/color] [color=lightblue] "Indeed. Then that settles that nicely. Tahlia's got me a taser I can conceal, and a few other goodies. Team'll know what to go for- data, and well, keeping the party going to get me my opportunity. Then we'll have him to chat to."[/color] Skye commented, Raph sitting up in his chair a little and turning completely to her, knowing while it wasn't his place to ask, he had to get it out of his system. [color=OrangeRed] "Why are we going after him, Skye? I thought talking to billionaires wasn't our forte, I thought it was dropping people? Surely we'd find a better way to get this data, just find a datacentre and break into that if you want to stop us getting hacked again? Don't get me wrong, the man is an asshole but this feels unpredictable."[/color] [color=lightblue] "You know as well as I do, some secrets, they're not on flash memory, they're up here. And they are just....well, they're so much easier to get than a hack."[/color] Skye pointed to her temple with that, the redhead smirking, knowing she was winding up Raph, the Israeli a little puzzled still. [color=OrangeRed] "Right....but you do realise, if he doesn't play ball and you get nothing, this is going to backfire, big time...and there's no easy way back from that. Brave as you are, are you sure you're gonna get something?" [/color] [color=lightblue] "Never was going to be without a little risk. But it's a measured response, the alternatives you know will be too difficult to do remotely, even at a datacentre. We can figure out what happened to us in Aralsk from the horse's mouth, and we take Artemis apart...because it's a hydra after all, with lots of heads. Killing him isn't going to help us. It's getting the root, and it's not his money I want....it's their network. Once he gives me what he needs, he'll be compromised enough, and we can set him loose and see where the trail goes because he'll be impossible to hide afterwards. We can see what happens. Let them run riot. Then stamp on the lot."[/color] [color=OrangeRed] "That's some social engineering you got going there?[/color] [color=lightblue] "I do try my best."[/color] Skye was steely, before cracking a grin, just knowing she could really get at their intel guy, and well, relish in that. [color=OrangeRed] "Fucking hell....you got intense quickly. Like, that's so evil....shit, normally I would have thought of that first...."[/color] [color=lightblue] "Like I said....there's lots of ways to get a job done. This happens to be the best one right now...and for a man who has an image to protect, it would rather be a shame if he couldn't return to his party without....oh, I don't know, something happening to that very thing."[/color] [color=OrangeRed] "What do you mean?[/color] [color=lightblue] "Oh, they're just details, I'll let your Mossad brain think on what I said. I don't muck around."[/color] [color=OrangeRed] "Skye...."[/color] [color=lightblue] "Thank me when I get you an insight into why our supposedly invincible network got hit. Anyway, I'll leave you with finding us some more intel, and some low-level backdoors to get Xan, Sam and the hackers over the line. Enjoy."[/color] Skye added, a wry smirk on her face, giving absolutely zero away. Need to know basis, and all that....and the satisfaction was going to be all hers. ------------ With a return out of the intel hub, Skye knew the team were at leisure- well, the sort of leisure that wouldn't mean it was all downtime. They had options- Raph was in his hub doing his thing, Javi was down in the motor pool with a new couple of buggies that had been brought in, Tahlia was in the armoury and well, Doctor Keller was probably having some rest after the insanity that had been the last couple of days of people coming in various states of repair. Checking weapons and gear, recovering their past equipment, even some more activities together were on the cards, so she left it open to them, knowing this was a brief interlude before they'd have a plan and be back out on things to come. It was as good as any opportunity for Skye to let them enjoy time without her being on top of them, let the team settle themselves in. For the time being, she had some work of her own to do in the office once again, and this time, figure out an extraction plan. Best case? They walked out of there, no skin off back. But if there was hacking taking place below, then Sam and Xan were going to need a fast track way out of there. And in an emergency? Well, Skye was working on that method...and really hoped it didn't come to that. Door left open, Skye clicked on some music, and the soft sound of [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XClvMMxBg1k]James Blake[/url] keeping her ears company.