@AbandonedIntel
The bar was nothiing special, and it was certainly nothing like what you saw in the movies. There was no bar fights going on, no shady dealings, nothing. There was a hint of smoke wafting through the air, likely from some cigars, and the unmistakable scent of beer, but other than that, it was actually pretty tame.
Evergreen sat in a corner stall, still in her current guise, and draining a tall glass of ice cold water. The truth was that while they were powerful, they needed to keep themselves hydrated, which befit their nature as a sentient plant. She saw a few men gawking at her and she winked playfully, causing them to look away in embarassment.
It was actually kinda nice to not have to worry about crimefighting for a change. Just kick back and take it easy while letting the world go on without you. Of course, this evening of peace and quiet was about to be interrupted.
A ringing went off on Evergreen's person, causing her to stop and sigh in dismay, "Really?...At this hour of the night?" Regardless, work came first, and so the hero/heroine got up and went to the men's bathroom...only to step out two seconds later and head for the women's washroom.
She locked herself in a stall and held out her gloved hand as a hole opened in the middle of her palm and out came a small black flip-open cellphone which seemed to be buzzing like no tomorrow. The number wasn't one she recognized which automatically raised suspicions. Still, it would be rude to just ignore the call so she flipped it open and hit the "Talk" button.
"Maxwell's Herbs And Medicines. How May I Help You?"
The voice at the other end of the phone spoke, it was the soft tone of a grown female. "Hello, my name is Asmaa Bashar, I am with Hudson Tactical Services." The female spoke. "May I speak with Jaden Maxwell?"
For a moment, Jaden was quiet. He was definitely not familiar with this "Hudson" group, but at the very least he needed to hear them out. "But of course, one moment." With that, the entity's body began to once more shift and warp like clay before settling back into his human guise.
After making sure everything was in place, and his hair was its regular color, he spoke up again, now using his normal voice, "Hello, Jaden Maxwell here. You wished to speak with me, Miss Bashar?" Might as well be polite for the time being.
"Take your time." The woman said, a smile in her voice. "Yes sir. I am Asmaa Bashar of Hudson Tactical Services, and I'm quite happy to speak with you. Not often that people answer our calls." She said with a soft chuckle. "We're well aware of your plant-like abilities, Mister Maxwell, and how potent they could be in both combat and work. If you're interested, we would like to schedule a... uhm... job interview if I may. If you'd like, you are free to ask any and all questions, I am very happy to answer them."
Needless to say, at hearing all this, Jaden's eyes widened considerably and he could feel himself going a bit pale, to the point of actually holding the phone away from him like it was about to jump to life and eat him! His secret was out! How could this be happening?! For a moment, he was actually tempted to shut off the phone and throw it away. He stepped out
of the stall and glanced outside the window but didn't see any signs of cars tailing him or anyone suspicious.
Deciding he needed to try something to try and avoid suspicion, he simply laughed as he held up the phone again, "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait a second, me? Control over plants? You've been reading way too many comics. This is a prank call, isn't it? Did one of my customers put you up to this or something? If they did, I apologize for them wasting your time."
"Smooth, partner, very smooth indeed." Gaia's voice came in his head and he got the impression she was rolling her eyes.
The woman sighed on the other end of the phone. "Sir, I understand your concern, and no, this is not a prank. We've discovered your plant-like abilities from research of various testimonies from criminals who were arrested, and connected the dots ourselves." The woman explained. "While I myself do read too many comics, not the type you may be interested in, I don't think is has anything to do with this anyway. Again sir, if it will make you feel better, I will answer any and all questions you ask."
Jaden let out a sigh of defeat as he leaned against the wall and listened to the woman on the other end. There was no escaping the truth, and if this woman was able to get his number without any prior leads...it was possible her group knew how to track him down too. At the very least, he could be cordial and ask what he needed to ask.
"Alright...you got me. Considering that this is likely on a secure line I suppose there's no point in hiding it..." He moved over to lock the door, "And I suppose I couldn't stay off the radar forever..." His voice became a little more firm now, showing he wasn't playing around, "But before I tell you anything, I'd like a little more information about this group of yours. What are they and why do they exist? The people you work for must be very well-informed to be able to track me down cause I'm pretty sure the testimonies of a few crooks wouldn't give you much to go on..."
The woman listened, and spoke again. "Hudson Tactical Solutions is a small contractor firm that works in consulting and risk assessments, security, direct action, search and rescue, ordnance disposal, and intelligence." The woman said. "In short, we're mercenaries, but the good kind." She reassured. And we exist because we figured we could offer our skills for the greater good, without having to live off of poverty wages." A smile was heard in the woman's voice again. "Is there anything else you would like to know?" The woman asked politely.
"I see..." Jaden listened to what he was hearing, nodding politely as the woman talked, "I'm going to be honest, and please don't be too offended, but I'm not use to the idea of mercenaries fighting for any cause that didn't assure them their next paycheck..." He sighed as went to stare out the window, "Still, if you really are being truthful...at the very least, I can respect what you're trying to do..."
He finally decided to get down to business, "Yeah...you mentioned a "job interview" but what kind? Would I need to leave town to come and see you?"
"Trust me, depending on what happens, we'd simply leave a business card. We're not all that stingy. And none taken, a few of the folks we hired aren't the savory type either but they are deployed more often than not, so you won't have to worry about them too much." The woman replied. "And besides... with your powers, depending on what you do, you could be paid quite handsomely." She offered. She listened to him, and his questions regarding the job interview. "Well... we'll actually be coming to you. In fact, if you'd like, we can see you tomorrow. We're based in New York, and we have access to helicopters and other vehicles." The woman said. "So we can see you anytime you'd like. I myself would be meeting you in person, and so is Lawrence. There will only be two of us, so there's nothing to worry about."
Jaden couldn't help but chuckle a little at some of what he was hearing, "You know, I'm getting the feeling you're trying to butter up to me..." Still, the thought of being paid well reminded him of his desire to save up enough money to pay for his college fund...and to put away some for when his Aunt and Uncle finally retired. That wouldn't happen anytime soon...but it didn't hurt to be ready for a rainy day.
"...Alright.." He shrugged, "I don't see the harm in meeting up with you...I don't really have anything planned right now either so we can meet up whenever it's convenient for you. I should warn you though...any funny business and I'll be coming after your group with every ounce of power I have at my disposal..." The fact he was able to say this so calmly and without hesitation was enough reason to show how serious he was about this. "Do I make myself clear?"
"Well I am trying to recruit you, it is natural, isn't it?" The woman joked. She listened to him. "Okay, sounds cool. We'll be meeting at your shop tomorrow afternoon. Expect us in a black SUV of some sort. We don't have any vehicles up where you're at so we're gonna have to rent one." She then listened to his warning, and a soft gulp could be heard. "Loud and clear, Mr. Maxwell." The woman replied, a little bit of anxiety in her voice. "Rest assured, you wouldn't need to do so. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Good!" The cheerfulness had returned to his voice at last, "In that case, I'll be seeing you tomorrow afternoon, Miss Basher! Have a lovely evening!" With that, he hung up and let the phone sink back into his body as he let himself transform back into his other guise and stepped out, humming, to start on his way home and to get some rest for tomorrow.
The Next Day
Jaden was sweeping the floor of the store, which currently had a "Closed" sign on the front door,, keeping himself occupied while he waited on the arrival of his guests. A part of him once again pondered if it had been a good idea to invite these people over. Of course, he quickly squashed any thoughts of that when he recalled two key facts: One, these people already knew who he was and where he was so there wasn't much point in hiding. Second, he and Gaia had agreed that, if it came down to it, they weren't really in that much danger considering that even a fraction of their power was enough to wipe the floor with most types of street thugs.
He stopped his sweeping and went to the window in time to see a black SUV pull up near the front door. "Huh, what you know? They showed up after all.." He turned to the plants who seemed to be following his every move. "Ok guys, let's all keep calm and make a good first impression!" With that, he headed towards the door, opening it to welcome his guests.
"Hello there."
A black Ford Explorer, a rental, would slowly crawl along the streets before parking along the sidewalk, where Jaden's business was located. The SUV was parked in front of the business, in plain view of anyone inside the building. It wouldn't be long before two people stepped out from the vehicle and closed the doors on either side of it. One woman, wearing a simple black HTS shirt and shorts, dressed casually, and a man wearing black combat pants, a tactical vest and a jacket over it. Both he and the woman wore a gunbelt, the woman having a Glock .45 holstered at her hip. They then stood and leaned against the vehicle, waiting. Soon enough, they spotted him through the glass of the store, and watched as he stepped out from his store.
"Hey, it's nice to meet the great Captain Planet in the flesh himself." The woman joked, walking up from the vehicle with the man. "I'm Ms. Asmaa Bashar, and this is Lawrence." She said, introducing herself and the man standing right beside her. "I assume you wanted to take this inside?" She asked. There was something a little more revealing about the woman this time... she was a little more awkward than she was on the phone. She looked out of her element.
Jaden wouldn't admit it out loud but even he found himself a little intimidated by just how decked out his two visitors looked. These were definitely not the kind of folks you wanted to run into down a dark alley. Still, he found himself relaxing a little at hearing the woman's voice and waved in return, "Hey, nice to meet the voice behind the phone..." He nodded in greeting to both of them.
"Yeah, if it's not too much trouble, I'd like to take this inside..." He took the door and held it open, beckoning to them, "After you. Also, you may see some things inside that may...well, catch you off guard but I assure you, as long as you don't cause trouble...you won't receive any in return." He smiled but it was obvious from his tone of voice that he meant what he spoke.
Both 'Asmaa' and 'Lawrence' entered the building, to which they both graciously nodded towards him. Once they were both inside, Lawrence stepped close to the windows, leaning against them and looking out. Asmaa on the other hand, looked to Jaden. Once he made that promise, she looked to him and gave him the really? face. "Dude. Fucking calm your tits. We're not here to hurt anybody, okay? Jesus..." She sighed, shaking her head before walking through the store. "If it makes you feel any comfortable... I kinda have powers myself. I'm slightly technopathic." She said with a soft smile before looking around. "You should get that fire alarm checked out, a few of the wires leading up to the lights and speaker systems look frayed." She said, pointing at the area in between the alarm switch and the alarm itself. "And..." She looked to the other side of the store. "... there's a few damaged wires over there too that lead to the radiator." She said softly, pointing to the area in the wall leading to the radiator.
Jaden blinked and tilted his head at hearing Asmaa's confession to having powers. As he heard her talk, he decided to test out her warnings by walking over and checking said fire alarm. His eyes widened a little as he realized her observation was correct, "Well, I'll be..." He sighed and shook his head, "I should've known there was something fishy about this building going for so cheap..."
He walked back over to the pair, now looking a bit more relaxed, "Thank you. I'll be sure to call up the electrician later and have him get it fixed..." His eyes gazed over his plant friends. If those wires had caught fire...this whole place would've burned to the ground.
He motioned to some chairs and took a seat, "Alright, you have my attention. I'm Jaden. Jaden Maxwell. American, I'll be turning 20 by the end of this year," He held his hand out to shake in greeting.
Asmaa smiled and shook his hand. "Kinda already knew that but... I appreciate the friendlier greeting." She said, letting go.
Lawrence then shook his hand. "Jaden." He nodded with a smile, his French accent just a little thick.
Asmaa gestured to Lawrence. "He's powerless... but he can kill a bear with his own two hands so... uh... yeah." She chuckled.
"She says that to everyone she introduces me to." Lawrence said with a bemused smile, his French accent much more clear in a full sentence. "While it is true, I'd rather not be judged by my ability to kill bears."
Asmaa rolled her eyes. "He's a little too humble for his own good." She sighed before looking back up to Jaden. "So yeah, if you wanna, we can get straight down to business."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Jaden immediately put up his hands to stop them, "Back up a moment...you said..your friend here," He pointed to Lawrence, "...Can kill bears with his bare hands...and no powers?" The plant man was so shocked that he actually had to take a moment to catch his breath, "Whoa..that's like Chuck Norris levels of asskickery!!"
"D-Did you like, serve under him at some mountain temple of awesomeness?! Or maybe, I don't know, you've pulled a Saitama and trained so extensively you broke every known physical limitation!" It was obvious he was fired up about this, "P-Please tell me...I am so jealous right now...and I'm the guy who can basically treat plants like a Green Lantern Ring!"
Lawrence chuckled. "Hahaha... I told you to stop telling people that bear story." He said to Asmaa, to which Asmaa gave an annoyed sigh. "Well it was a black bear, and it was feeling incredibly aggressive. We were all training in the woods, doing a search and rescue wargame. Normally black bears ignore... uh... humans, but this one was feeling really pissed off. Most of the weapons we had were of the paintball type, and were made only for the wargame. Nearly killed Eclipse Bravo." He chuckled. "But what happened was that while Eclipse Bravo distracted the bear, I wrestled it to the ground, choking it, strangling it with all of my might. It didn't work. It hurt me really bad with its claws, but I was still strong... there was a nearby rocky hill that led down into the stream... I led the bear to that hill, and once it chased me there, I grabbed it an slammed its neck against a jagged rock. CRACK! Killed him." Lawrence sighed. "Man I was an idiot." He chuckled. "We skinned the bear and now we have it hanging up the wall of our living quarters as a reminder to the new recruits to not fuck with me." He said with a soft grin.
Jaden hung on to his every word like he was watching one of his favorite movies, so involved with the story to even neglect his popcorn or any phone calls! Once Lawrence was done, he fell back in his chair, "Wow...not gonna lie, that's pretty crazy...you Mr Lawrence sir, are awesome, and I tip my hat to you..." He shrugged, "If I actually wore one, that is."
He breathed in and out trying to get himself to calm down, "Ok...ok...I think that's enough spazzing out for the time being...sorry about that..." Already, he had a new respect for these guys...and now had second thoughts about his earlier promise of physical harm if they tried anything. "Yeah...let's get down to business...so, how's this gonna work?"
"No no, it's okay man." He patted Jaden on the shoulder. "It's just circumstances. Had I not been near those rocks, I probably would've been killed or someone would've gotten a rifle and stole my kill." He said with a soft chuckle. "But yes, thanks."
Asmaa chuckled a little. "Yeah... I'm happy to have him watching my back." She said. "He actually used to be in GIGN, the French Counterterrorist unit. Just to garnish the dish of badass." She said with a soft grin. "But yeah... how this is gonna work, is that we can negotiate your contract here. Our contracts don't come in legalese, as they are basically saying that you're not allowed to sue us for shit, and that you're gonna have to keep a whole lot of what goes on here a secret. And that you're gonna have to follow any and all orders given by your commanding officer, but there are exceptions and stuff, like if we get all mind controlled or crazy or something then you have the right to disobey... bla bla bla. You get the idea." She chuckled. "But as for your duties, your abilities could prove to be a very great asset to our company. You can grow our food, you can make us the herbal solutions required for medical stuff typically more potent than that of what any pills could do... and you can even grow us some fine ass kush too." She said with a soft shrug. "And with your abilities of shapeshifting, and your abilities to do various attacks, you can actually support us on various missions, and actually be great help." She said. "You'll get paid a normal steady wage when on the base, but you get paid a whole lot extra by the job." Asmaa explained. "And the jobs we do? Well... the company is still in its infancy, but... we take on various criminal that have wronged our clients, and we work with various companies, government agencies and wealthy individuals for intelligence, search and recover operations, and from time to time, even containment and intimidation. All kinds of stuff." She said with a soft smile. "But most of the time you'll probably be hanging around the base training with the other folks. If you don't mind that, of course." Sukaina explained.
"However, if you feel like you aren't up for it, it's totally cool, this conversation would never have happened, and we won't contact you again. However, if you do change your mind, we are a call away." Asmaa said, pulling out a business card and handing it to Jaden.
Jaden listened to the lady's explanation with great interest. He nodded along to what was being said. It sounded reasonable enough. Basically, it sounded like he'd be in a support role. Helping to build up the group's infrastructure with his unique talents. He stood up and took the card before heading towards a rack of plants and herbs which he observed closely, as if they would give him an answer to his dilemma.
On one hand, their offer sounded promising, and he'd be able to help even more than he currently could...but at the same time, there was such a thing as biting off more than you could chew, and he wasn't entirely sure of how fond his Aunt and Uncle would be of this particular job. Also, couldn't he be happy with what he currently had? He had so much going for him right now, and things would only continue to get better if he worked hard enough.
Finally, he made his choice, "Your offer is a tempting one...and I can tell you two are decent people trying to make a difference. However...I'm sorry...I can't take your offer, not right now anyways..." He turned to them, shaking his head, "Nothing personal but right now there's way too much that can go wrong at this point in time...and I'm kind of on a personal mission myself. Obviously, I can't tell you all the details except that it's for...someone very special to me..." At this, he smiled a little.
"However, I'll hold on to this card.." He held it up, "Who knows? There may come a day when we'll both need the other's help. Until then, though...well.." He waved his arm at the place, "My store is open to anyone, as long as you're paying customers."
Asmaa smiled at his answer. "It's all totally cool, and I understand. Hell, I honestly would rather have someone give this more thought than running into the program blind, because... this is sort of a big committment, and it is risky as all hell. For all we know, the helicopter we're about to board could blow up because we ended up fucking with the wrong guy." She shrugged. "Either way, give it as much thought as you need." She said to him. "And I hope you end up accomplishing your personal mission... and don't forget to have the wires sorted out." She said with a soft smile. "Until next time." She held her hand for him to shake. If he shook it, she smiled and nodded. "Feel free to use that number if you need our services as well. Catch you later, Captain Planet." She said with a grin before heading out with Lawrence.
Before long, both of them would've entered their car, and drive off casually, heading back towards the direction of the ports. Eventually, they would've disappeared entirely.
Jaden smiled as he shook the lady's hand and wished them well before they left. He looked down at the card with an amused smirk, "Asmaa and Lawrence, eh?" He shook his head as he took off the "Closed" sign on the door and got ready for work, "You guys really need to think up more creative cover names than that..."
And so, the champon resumed his work, as if nothing had happened...
