RPG SYF:

[Lady Asphyxia]

[size=1]She sighed in frustration, shooting an annoyed glance at Liam. "It won't take me that long, you know. I could have done it later." He didn't appear to have listened to a thing she had said. Rather, he didn't deign to acknowledge anything she said.

She was walking a couple of paces behind Liam. If she looked behind her when they went around this corner, she could just catch a glimpse of...She grinned as she saw Callum. He was walking away from her, sure, but the view from the back was as nice as the front.

Liam, however, had noticed. A smirk played about his lips, even as they formed a slight pout. Rae ignored him, preferring to hug the contented feeling to herself tightly, not willing to let it slip away yet.

She missed this. Being a real teenager. Having a boyfriend -- having a normal relationship with someone.

Rae sighed and dry-washed her face, trying to bring her mind back to the topic: Liam's precious MS1.


[center]______________[/center]

Her fingers flew over the keyboard, and she never hesitated in her inquiries. She hit the enter key once, then leaned back in her chair, incredibly satisfied with herself.

"Done," she smiled.

Liam, who'd been hovering behind her the entire time, snapped to attention. "You have my baby?"

She ran a hand through her hair, eyes closing painfully. She probably needed to sleep, but she'd rather not. How long had she been at the computer?

The computer clock told her she'd been there for an hour and a half. She rolled her neck, hearing the vertebra click into place. "No, I now know exactly where it is. You were right. It is under glass, although not the kind you'd like. It's in the security compound -- in the weapons part of the floor we kept Pizaro on. To get it out, you'll need three signatures -- the Commander, The director, and, of course, Matt. Matt'll give it to you, and I can speed it up so that the first thing the Commander and the Director look at will be the application.

"Of course, then you'll need the clearance, which would mean another hour or two."

Liam just nodded, eyes glazed with longing. "Ahuh. So...when do I get my baby?"

"Well, with high security shipping, the time it'll take for it to go through the --" She coughed -- "'Right' channels, and the set back of you having to actually [i]get[/i] the clearance..."

She checked everything again, knowing Liam would complain if 'his baby' took any longer than she predicted.

"It should be delivered to Matt sometime during dinner."

Liam let out a sound, which at its manliest best could only be described as a high-pitched squeak of excitement.

Rae smiled at him tiredly, and then patted him on his shoulder. "Never let it be said that I neglect you."

He was incredibly solemn. "Of course not."

She squinted at him. "You do realise that you owe me?"

His disappointed face showed that he'd already thought of that, and had, in fact, been trying to weasel out of the debt.[/size]

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue][i]After taking one of her more contorted cat naps, curled up in the corner of a very large loveseat, she rose to her feet to find Rae. Why? ...probably because she was naturally protective of the women around her, and the technology that she had entrusted to her. If it was injured...she would scream loud enough to cause another explosion. She pulled back her matted hair and slid down the hallway to the computer terminals where Rae was working. Zharra didn't even have to look, the "tackety tackety tackety" sound was loud enough to lead a blind man into her arms. And that's exactly ......almost exactly what she did. As soon as she was within range, she slipped into subterfuge mode and circled around Rae until her knife was hovering an inch from her throat.[/i]

"Trick or treat baby."

"Maria y jesus y el josé!"

[i]Rae whispered, then heard the distinctive silvern laugh of Zharra and losened up. She slid into the next chair like a lynx and surveyed the work.[/i]

"Some translator."

"Liam whinned and bitched until I got his MS1 on order."

"Good girl. Now go to bed, you look like you're about to drop dead."

"No.....I'm fine."

[i]Zharra rolled her eyes at the obvious lie and stood behind her, brushing back her hair with her long fingernails, massaging the scalp underneath slowly...sensously. Rae unconciously relaxed, as she felt Zharra's smooth fingers brush against her tresses, braiding them slowly into long smooth ropes. Rae was about to protest, when she felt her eyelids slowly drift closed.[/i][/COLOR]

[liamc2]

[size=1]The computer room door bang closed and Liam walked back in, can of softdrink in hand. Rae jerked awake, and Zharra?s look shot daggers at the intrusion. Liam just shrugged and sat down in the free chair next to Rae.

?Did you find out about the ammunition too?? He asked, popping the top open.

Rae shook her head, ?no. Forgot.?

Zharra was frowning; Liam ignored it and looked at the screen. ?So?? he started, but his eyes drifted to the clock. ?Aren?t we supposed to be at Adam?s flat right now, for dinner??

Rae really jerked awake this time. ?What?? She exclaimed. ?That much time?s past already??

?Yeah.? Liam took a sip.

Rae was anxious, she logged out and shut down before leaping to her feet. Liam put down the can and watched the spectacle as she grabbed her things.

?Keys, keys?keys?? She muttered. ?Where?re my car keys??

Liam looked up at her and held up his own, emblazoned with a Mitsubishi logo. ?Who said you were driving?? He asked. ?If I wasn?t allowed a Subaru here, I might as well drive the compensation. Anyway, I haven?t been able to drive anywhere since I got to Singapore.?

?All right all right,? she said while snatching his arm and pulling him out of his seat. ?We?re late enough as it is.?

Liam found himself being dragged from the room, and his beverage getting further and further from his grasp. Zharra noted his intent, smiled, and picked up the drink, finishing it. She gave a cutesy little wave just as he was about to be out of sight.

?Come on!? He bellowed, ?I only just opened that!?

Rae continued at her rapid pace and freed Liam from her grasp. He began jogging to keep up with her.

?I need my lemony tang, alright?? He said.

?Where?s Callum situated?? She asked, brushing his inane statement aside.

?Umm, try the second door before the end of this corridor.? His tone was suspicious as he asked, ?why exactly??

?We?re meant to take him. He doesn?t know where Matt lives.?

Liam stopped dead, letting Rae continue down the hall. He called out to her, ?what? He?s coming in my car??

Rae just called back, ?fine then, we can always take mine.?

?Like hell we are.? He jogged and caught up with her, just as she entered Callum?s little office. In a whisper, he added as Callum stood, ?damned if I do, damned if I don?t.?

?Come on,? Rae said, breathless. Liam was certain it wasn?t because of the brisk walk. ?Liam?s driving us there.?

?Great, just let me grab something from the fridge.? Callum shone his dazzling little smile and walked into the annex desk worker?s break room. He returned with a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon, ?I thought it would be appropriate.?

Liam eyed the bottle of red with obvious distaste. Rae glanced at him and shrugged, explaining, ?don?t mind him. He feels that alcohol is a performance inducer, bane of all agents type thing. You know the type.?

Liam?s scowl increased. He spun his keys. ?Right. Now that we?re done defaming me, let?s get this show on the road.?


The xenon lights flicked on as Liam turned the engine over. It was a stylish little car, a two door five seater Lancer evolution six. He was going to hot it up, but it would ruin the retail value. Besides, last time he had a car tuned to perfection with all the bells and whistles, it was blown up. He had to then console himself with the powerful blue lights, the turbo?the six stack?the underbelly ultraviolet lights?

Rae and Callum had both climbed into the back, leaving Liam feel as though he was a prom chauffer. He turned up the music and pulled the silver car out of the underground car park.

The trip was a short one, straight through the centre of town. It would cost a heap to cross all those E-toll lines, but Liam didn?t foot the bill. Matt?s apartment complex came into sight, he drew the car off the road and inside. He flicked off the stereo and caught the last snippet of conversation before his passengers realised he could hear them.

-yeah well, it?s not as though he?s important.? Callum?s voice, once bold, trailed off.

Liam pretended he hadn?t heard and climbed out, pulling the seat forward so that they could get out into the cool parking lot.

?Matt?s on the ninth isn?t he?? He said, pocketing his keys.

?Yeah, ninth storey, number twenty-one.?

Liam strolled over to the elevator and opened it. Once they were inside, the doors closed and they conversation started again. This time, however, Callum expressed his concerns over the mission to Cambodia. Liam shut it out and was the first to exit and knock on Matt?s door.

It opened and Matt looked Liam up and down, ?you?re late.? He said. He brushed off the slightly cool tone when Rae reached the door, arm in arm with the bottle bearing Callum. ?Hey!? Matt continued, brighter, ?Cabernet? One of my favourites, but it?s too expensive around here to bother.?

Liam allowed them to walk inside, paused at the threshold, and closed the door behind him. When he entered, they were already seated at the table. He walked up and took the spare seat, next to Matt.

?Dinner?s stir fry I?m afraid.? Matt apologised as Liam sat down. ?It?s the only thing I can really trust myself to cook without burning.?

The rest of the evening followed, casual conversation drifted through three at the table, but Liam was reserved and only spoke when something was asked of him. Generally it was, ?pass that rock salt.? He remained polite, but he felt the evening was so false.

Until the doorbell buzzed. Matt looked surprised, but got up to answer it. He returned looking slightly miffed, as though the package he was holding was rotting and giving off a foul odour.

?That?d be mine.? Liam said, ?thank you very much.? He took the package and opened it, pulling out the Samsonite container inside the cardboard.

?What on earth is that?? Callum asked.

Liam flicked it open and pulled out what was nestled comfortably inside the foam. ?This my friend,? he said, ?is the MS1. There aren?t many of these in the world, but they?re all in ASIO?s reach. I?d give you the specs, but I?m sure it would bore you.?

?Liam,? Matt said, ?put the gun away. We?re having dinner, I don?t want you waving weapons about.?

?Fine.? He said resignedly and put it back in the case and under the table.
[/size]

[Lady Asphyxia]

[size=1]Rae smiled at Callum, the youth back in her face, in a way that hadn't been there for years. 'My brother, Adam, was an arrogant bastard, but a brilliant manipulator. He had a wonderful mind. One of the best programmers I've known.'

Matt sighed. 'He [i]was[/i] an arrogant bastard. He'd probably record everything in his computer files, never believing himself to be caught.'

There was silence for a few minutes, then Callum said, 'Speaking of getting caught...' and lapsed into a story of when he'd first gotten his license.

The conversation around the table was marvellous. Natural. To her it was a bright spark in a heck of a life. Of course, this spark was dimmed by a certain person: Liam.

He was acting like a spoiled little brat deprived of his favourite toy. But she'd [i]given[/i] him his favourite toy. It had taken her around two hours to organise everything, and he hadn't even said thank you!

Rae yawned and rubbed her eyes, smiling at Matt across the table. Liam was sitting next to him, Callum next to her. The dinner had been marvellous.

Matt grinned as she yawned again. 'Perhaps it's time for the baby of the group to go to bed. Besides, we're going tomorrow, so she'll need some sleep anyway.'

She nodded and said her goodbyes to Matt, hugging him and thanking him for the dinner.

They clamoured into the car, Liam still not having said anything besides the necessary.

[center]___________[/center]

Rae waved to Liam, and then walked along the hallway to Callum's door. Her fake smile dropped from her face as soon as Liam was out of sight. 'Sorry about that. Him, I mean. I don't know what's gotten into him. He's so...' She didn't bother trying to explain anymore. Callum seemed to know exactly what she meant.

He smiled at her with understanding. 'He's jealous, Rae. Don't worry about it.'

He gestured towards his room, indicating the kitchen and bench. Rae thought idly that the techies were certainly better provided for then the field agents.

'Do you want to come in?'

She smiled and started to accept, then remembered the thought that had occurred to her during the dinner. 'I'd love to, but I can't. I have some research to do.'

He seemed slightly disappointed, but grinned a second later. 'Okay. Some other time. Just make sure you sleep, okay?' He gave her another peck on the cheek, then walked inside his room and winked.

'See you later, Rae.'

He closed the door.

Rae stood for a second, frustrated with herself. She should have accepted his invitation. She [i]would[/i] have, if it weren't for the hunch that the remark Matt had made wasn't far off the mark.

She slipped into the computer room, noticing that in the dark, there was some odd flashes of light. Someone was on the computers. Probably playing a game, considering the lack of light and the flashes. The pictures were moving quite fast. She walked around to the origin of the light, finding Liam hunched over and playing Unreal Tournament.

She stood for a second, then said, 'I won't interrupt your important business.' Her voice was tinged with humour, but she switched on the lights and moved to the computer next to him.

She pulled up Adam's account, overriding the password with the global 'word of command'. She sifted through the files slowly, until she reached the case files labelled LC and JC, then pulled them up.

She read for a second, then an involuntary gasp ripped through the silence. She hit the escape button. Once. Twice. Nothing happened. She tried the exit button. Zip.

'What's the matter?' Liam asked as he wandered over. He recoiled when Rae pulled out her gun and shot the computer to hell. 'The...the...I'm supposed to do that!'

The door clicked open and the lights went on. There was a military police officer, a red cap, and he stood on the threshold. Liam watched in mock horror as Rae slowly rose and went with him. Liam motioned to go, but another Red Cap stood in his way and said; 'Sorry son. Commanders orders. You are to stay here until the Commander gets here. His word only.'

Rae left, seemingly using the arm of the red cap as a support.

Liam frowned as she left, then turned around, drew his Desert Eagle, and shot the nearest computer, then waited. Nothing. How come [i]he[/i] got no escort???[/size]

[The Harlequin]

[font=gothic][color=indigo][i]Katarina stumbled around aimlessly for a while, cursing at the sunlight and large number of people (OOC: Different time frame people), before coming across the right alley. She knew Malania would be around in one of them, but it was one hell of a labryinth, some would say rat warren, of a city, something she had so far become increasingly annoyed about. She ran into a nasty looking Russian agent, his left hand holding a knife, his right clenching something rather tightly. The look on his face told her she wouldn't like him much.

Given that, to her, license to act, along with a ...familar...groan from behind him, she stiffened her fingers and thrust upwards, striking his throat, just above the top ring of cartiliage in his neck. The look on his face as he gagged involunatarily was rather comical, even if it did only flicker on for a second. It was replaced by general pain as her other hand shot forward in a knifehand strike to the solar plexus. He flicked the knife hand towards her in a more desperate than aimed slash, she caught it with her right hand and twisted his wrist so the knife pointed towards his. He stood there a second, bent over, fighting her, before she lofted her right leg, then arced it downwards in an axe kick that dropped her heel onto the back of his neck, putting him down instantly, and probably killing him. No matter.

Using the foothold on his head she'd just obtained, she stepped over his inert form, was greeted by a sharp crunch, and finally found her errant friend. In a lot of pain, by the look of it. Katarina grabbed her by the neck and spun her over, before she drowned in her own vomit. She was unconscious, rather unfortunately, but that could be remedied. Katarina hefted her, catching sight of the rather grizzly would in her leg. Holding Malania over her shoulder, with her feet in front of Katarina, gave her ample time to examine it. The tendon wasn't fully cut, but was damaged, meaning she'd be able to walk at some point, but not for quite a while. Katarina absently considered exactly where wherever she was going from here was from here, and set off there.[/font][/color][/i]

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue][i]Zharra had switched over to a sarong again, legs folded, arms crossed, a slight frown on her face. Rae entered the commander's breifing room, escorted quite forcefully. She sat down as the escort instructed, and she didn't bat a single eyelid. She had predicted as much. Tracking devices, radio never turned off....

Zharra rose to her feet, making no noise, save the jingle of her anklets against themselves. The commander looked behind Rae and nodded. Zharra smiled and padded silently over to the desk and sat down gracefully.[/i]

"Hello Rae."

"....what are you doing here?"

"You shouldn't of tried to open those files."

"Was there a sign I should've not ignored?"

[i]Her sarcasm didn't ruffle Zharra in the slightest. But it did make her voice turn just this side of condescending.[/i]

"While I might be a field officer, I'm also one of the best computer programers in this system. The commander and Matt knew you would do something along the lines of what you did tonight. They had me rewire the programs to crash automatically."

"......how did you...?"

"I won't bore you with the minute details. But I will tell you this. I hate this feeling."

[i]The last words she spoke were oddly clipped and Rae tilted her head to one side. The commander smiled gaily and dismissed them both, with a stern warning about "Never trying a stunt like that a gain." Then he stood to go get Liam.

Zharra and Rae left quietly, both of them headed to the dorms. Rae fumed silently at her error until Zharra reached over and crushed her radio earing between her thumb and forefinger, then flicked off her own.[/i]

"Did you get the message?"

"I hate this feeling. Translation?"

"Take the first letter of each word and replace the rest with another set."

~~~~~~
I. Have. The. Files.[/COLOR]

[Lady Asphyxia]

[size=1] Rae stood for a second, and then said 'No, you don't.' She shot a look at Zharra, then winced. She was pale, shaking, and not a single thought could manifest itself except that if Zharra really did know, then she would kill her here and now.

But Zharra didn't. She wasn't that inhumane. 'You know,' Rae said, voice hinting anger and tears, 'sometimes you think you know everything, but you really, really don't.'

Rae stalked off, totally bewildered, then decided to return to the Commander. She returned to the Red Cap, who nodded respectfully, and Rae paused for a minute to give express instructions that [i]no one[/i], Zharra, Liam, and the rest of the team included, was to pass into the room. Through windows, doors, ceilings or air vents.

Perhaps it was an overreaction, but Rae knew exactly what she'd stumbled across, and so did the Commander. Zharra thought she did, but she truthfully had no clue. She wouldn't have had the access, in the first place. No one had entered Adam's system since the mission three years ago, and Rae had had to separate the computer from the rest of the system's; in case Adam had planted a bug or a virus in there.

The Commander smiled at her, and Rae -- in her sick-at-heart rage -- could have happily killed him without a moment's hesitation. How could he smile? This would destroy Liam. Destroy him.

'Look, I'm sorry for having to put you through that pretence, but it was for Liam's sake. He needs to know first.'

Rae's emotions were already freezing up, becoming brittle. She could feel cynicism welling inside of her. 'But he wasn't the first to know, though, was he?'

The Commander's eyes narrowed. 'If you're implying that I knew all along, you'd be completely wrong. The only reason I know now is because there was a program automatically installed to send a message to me, detailing [i]exactly[/i] what [i]really[/i] happened.

Rae's smile was nothing more that a bearing of teeth. 'Go on. Say it. Tell me [i]exactly[/i] what [i]really[/i] happened.'

The Commander sighed. 'Adam Stanton --'

'My brother.' Her voice was vicious.

'Your brother. Set up Jess, along with all the resistance fighters that she was sent to train. Gradually, bit by bit, it seems, he informed her of the alarming trend Liam's actions had taken.' He sighed and rubbed his tired eyes. 'Some of which was true. The [i]lie[/i] was that he told her that Liam had switched, and was coming to get her, to wipe out the SYF one by one.

'At the same time Liam fed the same information, except that Jess was the enemy...as both of their case handlers, he had the ability to do so without anyone's knowledge.'

His countenance darkened. 'It appears we now know the full extent of his treachery.'

'So what you're saying is,' Rae pushed, determined to try to purge the information from her soul, 'Liam killed Jess, who was completely innocent.'

The Commander's jaw clenched. 'Yes. That's what I'm saying.'

Rae gave a malicious -- albeit slightly hysterical -- laugh. 'So, when do you tell him the good news?'

The Commander shook his head. 'I don't.'

'Rae, you know, I now know. No one else does. I'm leaving it up to you whether or not to tell him.'

'It's your choice Rae. You can withhold it, and no-one will ever know. Or, you can tell him.'

She stared at him for a second. 'What? Live my entire life knowing what he didn't? Or living out my days knowing that he killed his sister, when she was innocent? Either way, I get stuck with the knowledge.'

Her face was pale and drawn, eyes holding a haunted and hunted look. 'You want me to tell Liam that my brother made him kill his sister, don't you?'

His face remained even. 'It's your choice.'

Her lip curled in disgust. 'I hate you.' She spat.[/size]

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue][i]Zharra rolled her eyes and flicked a laser disk between her fingers slowly. While she did have files, she must admit, she didn't even read them. It wasn't in her interest. Ananda had led her to several windows of oppertunity, most of which she had exploited without a qualm. And while the Commander was vaguely aware of Ananda's activities, as a free agent, she still wasn't completely under a microscope. Perhaps that explained Zharra's skill, perhaps it explained why she was able to do so much. But either way she had some things that should not be opened. And they were all contained in encrypted files in her disk.

She had no idea what was really in them. But sensitive information it was, and she wouldn't bother opening them until the time arose. And it certainly wasn't now. She could see Rae exiting, angry, tired, drained. And very bitter looking. She didn't move, but she knew that Rae's path would take her right past the chair in the corner. Ah well....let her come. Come what may, she had no lethal ideas, no hatred of the masses, and no major beef with anyone here. Maybe Rae's attitude could use some work. It made sense, but it still wasn't right. Nor was the way Liam responded. None of it made too much .....yes it did.

Ananda had mentioned some things, Jaudiar many others. The two had a torrid relationship of deep dark pasts, problems, and torture. Jaudiar mentioned a mission once where torture was the name of the game.....and Liam was the victem.[/i]

"....have a nice evening Rae."

"......"

"And if you're ever interested, you can take a look at this,"

[i]She held up the disk between two fingers.[/i][/COLOR]

[Lady Asphyxia]

[size=1]Rae stared at it as if it were the devil. 'Burn it. Destroy it. Make sure no one ever sees it again.' She whispered. 'And if you ever look at them...'

'You'll kill me?' Something -- possibly humour -- tinged Zharra's voice. She pocketed the disk.

Rae's lip trembled. 'Yes. No. Maybe.' She rubbed her face. 'I can't deal with this yet.' She muttered to herself. The day to day human interaction was far too involved for her to handle in her current state. Besides, she needed to find Liam.

He had to know, and soon. These things had a habit of getting out, even if no one said anything. They always did. She dry-washed her face and closed her eyes, noticing that the clock on the wall said it was 1am. She left for the mission in a few hours.

Oh, boy, was she going to [i]love[/i] Columbia. Perhaps she could find some dank, dark, out of the way place to go -- maybe Pizaro's mansion.

[i]If I were Liam[/i], she thought, painfully injecting some humour into her situation, [i]where would I be at this time of night?

The drink dispenser.[/i]

She started off in that direction, her teeth worrying at her lip.[/size]

[The Unholy Newt]

[size=1]Bradley was thirsty. He got up out of his room and went pff in search of the drink machines. After about 15 minutes of wandering around the labyrinth that is the SYF HQ he finally found the vending machines.

As he was leaning down to collect his tasty beverage, he felt the hairs of his neck prickle as someone silently, as possible, approached. Liam came up behind Bradley thinking that he had no idea he was there and then leaned in close behind him and yelled.

'BOO!'

'Good evening Liam'

'Goddamn it, you and Rae are no fun. You can't scare someone if they know you're there.' He said dejectedly.

'Oh I'm so sorry Liam, how's this.' Bradley feigned a look of absolute terror and cowered behind one of the drink machines.

'Thanks,' Liam said dryly.

'So what are you doing here this time of night.'

'Tradition.' He said off-handedly.

'Sorry, I missed that.'

'Every night when possible I have the yearning for a nice cold 7-Up.'

'I see. You know what this calls for?'

Liam and Bradley played a brief game of 'can-on-the-head-around-the-bench-near-the-SYF-HQ-vending-machines' and then Rae turned up. She looked rather troubled, she leaned over to Bradley and whispered in his ear.

'Goodnight, Bradley'

Bradley made himself scarce.

~TUN[/size]

[The Harlequin]

[font=gothic][color=indigo][i]Katarina kicked the door open, her hands being rather busy keeping Malania on her shoulder, and more to the point, less than bleeding steadily and aggravating the injury. She was part way up the corridor when she ran into Bradley. He immediately beckoned back the way he had come, and shook his head, making the cryptic comment "Rae and Liam"...Katarina, of course, assumed something different to what actually happened, but anyway. She backtracked and returned to their room another way, jamming the table against the door and stacking several glasses in front of the window. No one was going to get in without a problem. (OOC: Which is a less than subtle hint people. We're busy, come back later.) She lay Malania down on the bed, and walked over to the sink. Cupping her hands with water, she returned to her friends inert form, and rinsed the wound. It wasn't nearly as bad as she had first thought, Malania's white skin making a very good substitute for tendon tissue at a glance. The tendon was scratched, but less than half severed. It would no doubt be sore for a few days, but no permanent damage. She rooted around in the single cupboard for a while, eventually digging out the de rigeur first aid kit that was the staple diet of all forces dormitories. Liability insurance must have gone through the roof recently...

Anyway, a nice clean bandage and a rather nifty looking metal splint thing later, Malania's ankle was in much better condition, and chances are, with the foot enveloping splint, she'd be able to walk without aggravating it. And, better yet, she was actually regaining consciousness. Katarina felt better than to expect coherency though. She also had the foresight to have quiet a few heavy duty pain killers on hand.

A fair percentage of the pack was gone before Malania felt like talking.[/i]

Malania: I got fired.

Katarina: I noticed. Don't vorry, I killed ze son off a bitch.

Malania: Well, aren't you a doll.

[i]Katarina fervently hoped that could be put down to the incoherency and the pain killers.[/i]

Katarina: Anyvay, given his prezence, vat say ve go on a little trip tomorro?

Malania: Let me guess, you want to extract horrible bloodthirty vengence upon them?

Katarina: Zyou could say zat.

Malania:This just gets better and better.

[i]She motioned to say more, but Katarina placed a finger over her mouth. The one with the ring that had "Whisper" written on it ironically, a moniker no one except Malania knew her by anymore. Katarina removed the heavier, more uncomfortable elements of Malania's and her own clothing, and settled down next to her, making sure she got some sleep and didn't get into anymore trouble. Until tomorrow...then trouble would be good. She'd have to remember her shotgun.[/font][/color][/i]

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue][i]Zharra shrugged. Rae would kill her if she did destroy it....that and Ananda would have her head. She went to the closet with a lock, where she was storing her personals, not that she had alot. In an exo skeleton hiker's pack, in a fireproof box, she stored the disk along with at least twenty others of similar design. With her titanium ear stud she locked the box once more and replaced it in the side pocket carefully. The disks couldn't be encrypted by anyone but her....but that didn't mean she would leave them lying around.

She sealed everything in her pack, dressed in the clothes she would wear tomorrow, brushed her hair, combed it out, then braided it again. Then she went to the bathrooms, brushed her teeth, washed her face, and clipped back her ever growing nails. She murmered to herself, remembering how heat made them grow like weeds. Then, she took out her clear coat polish and administered the substance that made them harden and become healthier....as if it was necessary.

Then she zipped up her bag of toiletries and returned it to her pack, then clipped everything up. Come morning, she would be ready to leave in ten seconds....which is why she planned on sleeping in right now. She took four steps to the collective common room, tripped herself on a bookcase and sprawled out flat on the bed. Her face mashed into the soft cushions and she moaned very loudly, relieving tension. Bradely walked by and gave her a look.[/i]

"Whaaafff?"

"....I would ask you what you're doing in full army fatigues, with an exo skeleton backpack in full view....and your ass as well."

"Gaghs, fucker."

[i]She rolled over, cutting off the view that he had been afforded by her very low cut pants and opened her eyes. With her free hand she gave him the finger, then grinned.[/i]

"I'm going to become dead to the world...and unless you want to sleep with me, go do something else."[/COLOR]

[The Unholy Newt]

ooc: I'm assuming that you want something to happen Raiha so I'll go on that.

[size=1]Bradley seriously considered his situation. . . But not for long.

'You don't waste anytime do you?' He asked.

'No, not really,' she responded bluntly.

Bradey really looked at Zharra for the first time and took the sight of her in. She was quite attractive and obviously eager. She looked at him coyly.

'Would you like a closer look.' She ran her fingers teasingly down the front of her shirt unbuttoning it (ooc: I assume you have buttons). She wore a simple grey singlet beneath her shirt which showed her figure quite clearly.

Bradley got the point, quite quickly actually. Bradley moved over to her and took her in his embrace. They kissed passionately. Zharra took a hold off Bradley's lower lip between her teeth and pulled him down on to the bed.
[/size]

ooc: Your turn, I don't know how far you wish to go with this.

~TUN

[liamc2]

[size=1]Liam raised an eyebrow at Bradley?s rapid exit. A small grin played across his lips. ?What?d you say to him?? He asked.

Rae didn?t reply and instead, became suddenly interested in the softdrink in his hand. Liam very slowly put it to the table, Rae?s eyes followed it. Just as slowly he lifted it back to his mouth, her eyes followed.

Needless to say Liam repeated the process until the absence of conversation got to him.

?Rae?? He asked as he put the can down for the last time. ?You?re starting to weird me out. Is there something wrong?? No response came. ?Is it Callum?? Her head shook. ?Matt?? Again she shook her head. Liam sighed. ?Right. What?ve I done??

Rae looked as though she was holding back tears as she shook her head one more time. A light clicked on in Liam?s head.

?What has Adam done?? He questioned, voice solemn.

Rae took a shuddering breath before starting. ?He lied Liam. He lied about it.?

?That?s great. I already know that.? He picked up his can. ?Moving right along to your point.?

?He lied about your sister.? She said. It was getting easier to talk now? ?You were ordered to assassinate Jess because you were informed that she was a traitor. She was the told same thing about you.? Her eyes were slightly unfocused, looking slightly above Liam?s head. ?Adam lied to you Liam. He ordered you to kill your sister when she was innocent.?

There was a gap in the conversation where Rae looked relieved that it was out, but was starting to worry about Liam?s reaction. Liam sat for a while, motionless, as his mind pondered what had been said. Rae went to say something, but stopped when Liam leant forward and finished the rest of the can in front of him.

?Right.? He said. ?That?s good to know.? His voice was slightly upbeat, but dismissive.

?Liam?? Rae said, ?you?re in denial??

?Nah I?m not.? Liam countered. ?I?m just not letting it register. There?s a difference you know.? He rose from his seat and looked down at Rae.

Rae looked right back up, muttering in her head [I]?don?t shoot the messenger?[/I]

Liam took her hand, patted it, and sauntered out of the room, calling back as he left, ?I really need some space to think this over.?

As he got further and further from the room, his mood steadily darkened.

[I] ?That?s right. Grow up in your teen years with your favourite sibling in a secret government organisation. Get sent on missions together, then separately. Then you find out she?s a turncoat. You don?t believe it but accept the order to kill her anyway. And then get over it steadily. You move on, get a job?or something. Then you find out that your sister wasn?t really a traitor at all. Talk about screwed up irony.?[/I]

As he walked his hands found the MS1 on his back, his Desert Eagles now being on his thighs. In his bag he had found two lone clips of the ammunition for it. One hundred rounds all up. Which was a good thing seeing as the MS1 seemed to be slightly modified. It now resembled a MP-10, with the double front cartridge slot.

Two clips at the same time, and it now seemed to have a semi-automatic, burst and full automatic option now. Very classy.

Liam stalked down the corridor, slotting in the clips one by one. The cases for the rounds were the same as always, with the fancy belt hooks for easy storage, but the gun was different, and he had to find out if it worked.
[/size]

[Ravenstorture]

[color=darkgreen][font=gothic][i]2001 russian sunshine streaming in dappled through waterfall of jasmine vine burning paterns reflected from silk sheets into malania's eyes closed muscles tensing hands sliding down over stomach skin sheets silk skin flesh aleks... she moved her whole body to the left, drifting past cold spots and warmth, using both hands now, found more skin. Cupping ribs pushing herself down head resting on firm stomach, silk of cheek on silk of navel. A hand strokes the liquid ink hair from malania's face and a tear nomadic from duct touches alien soil gasping... aleks pulls her up and she cries harder on his white pith stretching tight hands nails digging pain don't want to leave you don't want to leave you hands up further meeting breast flesh not hers -

- Malania awoke with a start, her hands up Katarina's bra. Sighing, Malania wiped her still fiancee from her mind and pulled her hands down again. Katarina either was still sleeping, or very... nevermind. Malania went to stand up and suddenly remembered the massive wound in her ankle just before her foot hit the ground. Limping softly, she reached the ensuite with little trouble and gritted teeth, and turned the shower on. Stipping carefully, she stepped under the ice cold water and gasped.

Katarina's idea wasn't that bad. The KGB had stolen her life, identity, family, love, any prospect of a normal life, and any freedom she may have had. And now she couldn't walk properly. Oh - and they've jsut ditched her, too. Malania broke some tiles with her elbow. Hmm.. someone sound like they're having fun next door.... the other side, and the sound of someone rapidly dryfiring some hardware. Ah, the life of a barracks... where you can get away with murder.

Malania finished the shower and dried herself carelessly, collapsing back onto the bed in the intoxicating heat. [/i][/color][/font]

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue]You're very perceptive... I thought it was time for some heterosexual sex.... [Thanks alot Flynn and Luci, I owe you both big]
~~~~~~~~
[i]Without moving her lips from his , Zharra delicately removed her shirt and dropped it to the ground. Bradley didn't twitch, instead he let both arms slide up her perfect figure, feeling the contours of her wide hips, firmly rippling stomach, and curving breasts. Her skin glowed in the dim track lighting, and she took the opertunity to remove his wifebeater with a swift jerk. It hit the floor and she did a wrestling move, pinning him beneath her, straddling his chest. He looked up, able to do nothing but watch as she slowly removed her heather gray top, exposing her utterly delightful chest. Skin dark, presumeably from the Singapore sun, and not just with tanlines...

He raised one eyebrow, smiling. Life in the field was tough. Sometimes.[/i]

"What? Do you like what you see?"

"After a Triad prison, a shoot out, and an explosion.....what do you think?"

"I think you've got a hardon."

[i]She purred and trailed a finger down his lips, throat, and cheset. Then she moved herself lower and ground herself into him lovingly.[/i][/COLOR]

[BabyGirl]

[color=deeppink][size=1]Just a note: Anyone can feel free to do anything about what happens at the end of this post. I don't have any set ideas on where it's going, so yes...feel free to run with an idea if you have any.

-----[/color][/size]

[color=purple]An hour later, Bailey woke with a start and made an automatic gesture to retrieve her gun. When her hand came out from under her pillow empty, the entire night came rushing back into her slightly foggy brain. She hadn't even gotten undressed, much less stored her Beretta away for the night. The silence of her room was what had awoken her...or was it?

Bailey stilled, calmed her breathing and tried to remember if she had been having a nightmare that would have woken her up so violently.

Something unspoken seemed to hover in the air until a voice made her shiver, "Thiz iz a bootiful gun."

[i]She knew that voice...[/i] Bailey's heart started to beat a little faster, and as her eyes started to adjust to the dark room she was disappointed by two things; Rae's absense and the silvery outline of someone's face. His glasses caught a small stream of light and glinted madly at her.

[i]Shit.[/i]

"You have not spoken, but you know, [i]c'est moi[/i]." In the dark, a malicious grin spread across his slightly weathered face.

She spoke, her voice wavering slightly with false courage, "Xavier."

"So smart." He stood and approached the bed where she sat tangled in a blanket. "We have been looking for you, [i]cherie[/i]. I wanted to finish thiz job long ago, before you grew too big of a threat to deal with. I decided to bide my time instead."

"Bullshit." Bailey edged closer to the wall.

He gave her a small laugh, "No, [i]cherie[/i], you underestimate my intentions. It's just too bad that they had to get you all involved with an operation like thiz one." He twirled her gun around his finger once.

She felt hot tears sting her eyes, "Why are you here? How did you get in?"

"You are not zhe only one with connections inside thiz organization, Madame Carlmine. Zhe rest of your family was not so smart as you. Your father was a pigheaded armyman, too confident for his own good."

Bailey's anger slowly rose a notch, but she remained silent.

"You do not wish to defend your ass of a father? Very well. Your mother...she was something that I wish I could have kept alive. She did not need to die, but she, too, was pigheaded because she loved your father too much." Xavier, who had planted himself on the bed next to Bailey, leaned close to her and touched her hair, "It was a sad day when I had to kill her too, but in the end she deserved it. She defended your father too fervently, she became a bit too abrasive." He stopped to reminisce, a ghostly smile playing on his lips.

The pleasured look in his eyes flippedd the switch on the rest of Bailey's tolerance. She took advantage of his lapse in attention and kicked out awkwardly at his head. Because of the way she was sitting on the bed, her foot connected with his jaw hard enough to knock him off balance, but it wasn't enough to deter him completely.

When he caught his balance and lunged for her, Bailey slipped off of the bed underneat him and punched him squarely in the stomach. Hit by the full force of it, Xavier fell onto the bed with a pained [i]hmph[/i] before righting himself again.

He studied Bailey for a moment, her long gold hair was free and mussed, and he felt lust tighten in his stomach, "You certainly have grown up, [i]cherie[/i]." Her gun was still in his hand, and he raised it up and cocked it at her, "It's a shame that I won't be able to watch your skills for any longer, [i]ma belle[/i]."

[i]Ooh, he disgusted her![/i] Bailey sidestepped out of the line of fire and kicked out at the gun in his hand. It was unfortunate that he had anticipated that sort of move from her, because he caught her leg and sent her sprawling onto her stomach.

He kneeled over her, one leg on either side of her ribs, and pressed the gun firmly to the back of her neck. Using his free hand to dig into his pocket, Xavier pulled out a small flask of chemicals that, once inhaled, would knock Bailey out for hours.

"My team," she struggled against his heavy weight pressing into her back, "they'll stop you. You won't be able to get out of here with me."

She felt her consciousness slip away as he whispered, "[i]Au contraire, ma cherie[/i]."[/color]

[liamc2]

[size=1]
Liam stalked down the corridor, slotting in the clips one by one. The cases for the rounds were the same as always, with the fancy belt hooks for easy storage, but the gun was different, and he had to find out if it worked.

Liam reached the doorway to the training room. It was locked. A small notice had been fixed, stating that there were ?technical difficulties? or some rubbish. Liam raised his leg and kicked the door. It rattled in its frame, but the three locks held.

?Fine then.? Liam growled.

The MS1?s thumb scanner glowed as Liam pressed his hand into the grip. There was the sound of bullets being automatically chambered. Liam flicked it to full automatic. He pulled the trigger and a fifth of a second later both clips were empty and the door was in shards on the ground.

Liam held the barrel away from him as it cooled. He continued his stroll through the building, dumping the used clips in the rubbish bin as he passed. He entered his dorm room just as someone ran past, running to where the shots had come from.

Liam received no small pleasure when he noticed that it was Callum.

The MS1 settled back into its foam lining like a beast sliding back into the water. He closed the case and slipped it back into his bag. There was a buzz of static.

?Radio. Probably should have returned that.? He said, fishing it out of the bag.

There was the sound of someone coughing, breathing as though in pain.

?Not all the radios were accounted for?there might be someone still alive?? Liam pulled out his laptop from the drawer and started it up. He left the room in a hurry and returned, carrying a piece of hardware. A frequency triangulate. He plugged its USB into the side of his computer and the radio into a plug on the other side.

The crackling continued, but this time there was an overtone of the triangulate working. There was a pause, and the computer hummed, clicking as the information was uploaded. An address appeared.

?What?but that?s nowhere near??

He clicked the address and topography of Singapore appeared, with the address highlighted. It was a good fifteen minutes from the desolation. He jotted down the address.

Leaving the equipment still set up, he left the room, closing the door behind him. Open doors flashed past. He ran past the door to Zharra?s room and kept going. Then stopped, backtracked and without looking, closed the door. He shook his head and kept going.

?There goes two team members.? He passed Katarina?s door, it too was closed. ?Two more.? He groaned and made his way to the car park. ?It?s got to be Bailey. I?m not dragging Rae into this either. She?s too damn depressed right now.? The irony in the back of his head smirked.

He forgot the elevator and opened the service door. Inside was a long spiral staircase. Without any hesitation he sat on the railing and slid right on down to the bottom. The rush of adrenaline and air did something the wake him up, but the bags were still weighing on his eyes.

He hit the floor running, recovering as his tired knees almost buckled under him.

?C?mon, c?mon.? He grunted as the pain flared.

With a free hand he hit the button on his key chain. In front of him the indicators flared on his car. Minutes later he was out in the night. One-handed he took the car out onto the road in front of the lights, with the other hand he pressed the console. The trendy little GPS rotated and turned on. He checked the lights and entered the address.

The lights changed and the directions popped up. He ignored the speed limit and shifted gears. It wasn?t as though there was anyone on the roads this early anyway. The GPS prompted straight ahead. He shifted up to third.

This particular straight was infamous for the night racing that afflicted much of the youth culture. Liam personally had no grudges against it, but he never seemed to have the time.

There was a line up of cars in front, all decked out in absurd metallic paint. All of them were Nissan Skylines. Liam shifted up again and switched lanes, bypassing them at just over a hundred k?s.

Behind him he heard the Skyline?s start up. Not that it mattered, the directions changed. He shifted down and twirled around into a side street. In front of him a hotel loomed. Liam raised an eyebrow and parked out front. The blue xenon lights dimmed slowly as he climbed out of the car.

The minutes seemed to drag by as he entered in. He checked the hotel registry. The latest room was booked by someone with close to Bailey?s handwriting?albeit it was a bit scrawled. At least it was on this floor?

He tried the handle, Desert Eagle slightly raised. There was Bailey, lying on her side and facing the other wall. He gave a precursory sweep on the room and made his way over, putting the gun away.

?Hey,? he said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Liam doubled over as her fist swung round and collided with his stomach. Bailey sat up with a look of triumph, that quickly changed to one of apology as she noticed Liam?s face contorted in agony.

?Oh?I?m so sorry?I though you were someone else.? She blinked. ?Where?s Xavier??

?Weir?weir?? Liam gasped and stood up, hands on his sides. ?Weird looking guy with glasses??

?Yeah?? She said.

?I saw him in the lobby, with a newspaper. Didn?t look to be a threat though.?

?C?mon!?

Bailey got up from the bed and brushed past him to the door. She paused and looked at him. Liam groaned and made his way over, ignoring the pain in his stomach and legs.

They reached the empty lobby and rushed through to out the front. The morning sun was just creeping up and silhouetted against it was Xavier, hurriedly getting in a car.

?That him?? Liam asked, raising his gun.

?Yes.?

?Great.? He said, pulling the trigger.

The bullet flew through the air and clipped Xavier?s shoulder, and went right on through to crack the windscreen. His blood showered the inside upholstery, but he hobbled in and started to drive away. Liam raised his gun again, but Bailey pushed it down.

?We?ll get him later.? She said. ?I?m too tired to bother now.?

Liam silently agreed and made his way to the car.

?I wonder why he hadn?t left yet?? Liam wondered aloud. And then he noticed someone beside his car, twenty or so metres away. ?Hey!? He called out.

But the thief was already inside. Liam heard the engine turn over and the car pulled out, and exploded.

?There?s your answer.? Bailey said.

Liam raised both his arms into the air to appeal to the skies and cry ?Why?? And then he changed his mind and dropped them.

?Screw it.? He muttered. ?I?m too tired and I?ve had way too many explosions to care. Taxi!?
[/size]

[The Unholy Newt]

[size=1]Bradley let Zharra have her turn in control for a while and then without notice he clasped both off her shoulders and flung her back and went with her as she fell into the mattress. She playfully tried to struggle but to no avail as Bradley was easily stronger, than most of the team actually, not just than Zharra.

Zharra did not easily admit defeat though. She put her face into his chest and gently though just enough to give a bit of pain, bit Bradley's nipple. Bradley cried out, more in suprise than in fright and while he was distracted, Zharra rolled him over and regained her position.

'That's cheating.' He complained half-heartedly.

'So?'

'How would you like me to do it to you?'

'Go ahead.'

Bradley did so, except rather than bite her he kissed her softly and while she was enjoying her victory, and enjoying other things as well, Bradley flung her back again. Before Zharra could fight back, Bradley tenderly kissed her on the lips and lovingly ran his fingers through her hair, down her face and then ran them down behind her back, his fingers brushing her shoulder blade in a circle.

'You're very good,' she breathed.

'Thank you, would you believe this is my first time?' He grinned.

~TUN[/size]

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue][i]Zharra's laughter was like pealing bells, and she smiled at him, one eyebrow raised skeptically.[/i]

"Actually....yes."

"Is it that obvious?"

"Hardly. I could tell from the way you're still blushing....and thought that me bitting your tittie was cheating."

[i]Bradley was about to pout when she wrapped her arms around his neck and caught him up in a soul searing kiss. He moaned softly and she massaged the back of his neck with her fingertips, then slid both her legs along the back of his, heels digging into the small of his back when they stopped. He got the hint and slowly slid her pants down. Army fatigues, they were a loose fit, and easily slipped off and onto the floor. She grinned at him and he raised an eyebrow.[/i]

"Going commando?"

"It's liberating."

[i]She grinned at him, the smile that lit up a room, and placed his left hand on her breast and the other on her pussy.[/i]

"Good boy."[/COLOR]

[BabyGirl]

[color=purple]They sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes as night scenes flashed by the taxi windows.

Bailey exhaled softly and turned away from the window, "Thanks, Liam."

He flashed a grin, "No sweat." And then turned his attention back to the night.

"I don't even know how tonight happened, to be honest." Bailey's head had a deep and painful throb that doubled when an attack of sneezes caught hold of her.

"Bless you." Liam said tentatively, unsure if any more sneezes were on their way.

"Heh, thanks. It's probably because of that stuff he used to knock me out with. I wouldn't be surprised if it killed a few brain cells along with destroying my nasal cavities." Bailey gave a small laugh and scratched her itchy nose.

"Who was that guy?"

"Xavier," she poured French pronunciation into his name before switching back to English, "he's a little crazy."

"How did you end up at that hotel?"

Bailey stared at her reflection in the dark window, "I don't know. I went out with Nick tonight, but I don't remember most of it."

Liam raised a knowing eyebrow, which Bailey shook her head at, "No, it wasn't because I was too drunk. There's just a lapse in what I remember."

"Is Nick a friend of yours?"

She smiled slowly, "Maybe."

He didn't smile in return, "Come on, Bailey. I'm just trying to help figure out why I came to get you."

She frowned, "Nick is half-friend, half-boyfriend. Or neither. Or both. I don't know what he is."

"An SYF member, then?"

"Yeah. We trained together. I just found out he was in Singapore tonight."

Liam made a 'hmm' sound and then they both fell silent.

Bailey suddenly laughed, "I'm so sorry about punching you."

"Heh," Liam's stomach still echoed spasms from that, "I've had worse."

"I was at a loss for what to do, I out cold until shortly before you got there. I would have hit whoever walked in the room at that point." Some of the humor faded from her voice, "Liam, can I tell you the truth?"

He studied her solemn expression, "About what?"

"About Xavier." Liam didn't respond, but continued to study her, "It's just that I think he's going to be after me for a while, especially now that he knows I'm with SYF. I feel obligated to tell you since I feel like I'm endangering everyone."

He nodded, "Go ahead."

She took a deep breath, "Xavier killed my parents. I still don't know why, but I do know that he's been looking for me for a long time, and he's struck gold by finding out what I'm doing now. I know that he's both relentless and dedicated when it comes to a goal he's set." She trailed off, considering...

"And you're his goal this time." Liam finished.

"Yes. I'm not scared about it, but at the same time I am. He has loyal men behind him, powerful ones. I can handle them, but it's Xavier himself that scares me. Every time he's around me I feel like I'm choked by what he did to my parents. That's why I couldn't ward him off tonight, I think, everything about him turns me to stone."

Bailey stopped and cocked her head at Liam, who flashed another grin, "Well, we're all here for you, you know."

Bailey's grim smile followed his own as she nodded, "Thanks. Liam. It's just that...if it puts anyone else in jeopardy, I'm leaving."

The rest of the ride was quiet.[/color]

[liamc2]

[size=1]

Liam let her last words roll around in his head, they bounced around like a drunk finding a kebab shop, finding interesting things along the way. He recalled his life as a sixteen year old, returning to a school that he?d only just purged of a terrorist threat a few years before. Not to mention throwing a student counsellor out the window, deliberately discharging a weapon to intimidate team members?

Liam gave a wry smile when he faced her. ?You know,? he said, ?you?re being slightly pedantic there. We all have issues, serious issues.? An unwelcome image of Bradley and Zharra flickered through his mind before being violently put down. ??Some issues more serious than others??

Bailey looked mildly affronted. ?What?? Was all she could say.

?Look. What I?m trying to say is that I?m frequently put into jeopardy all the time.? In a slightly lower voice he added, ?mostly by me?Hell. Lots of weird trippy stuff happens. My past crops up, Rae?s past crops up, family gets involved, I mean, look at what just cropped up about my sister. I mean, would you believe it?? His voice faltered.

Bailey was now confused. Liam went from conversational back to an introverted lump with eyes that glazed over, a sure sign he was thinking about something painful.

?Sister?? She started. ?What about your sister??

Liam sat back up in his seat and pinched the bridge of his nose, waving the question away. ?Nothing,? he said, ?it?s been a really long day and that new piece of painful information is one that I really don?t want to bring up right now. Maybe later when I?ve not got a headache the size of my ego.?

Bailey looked bewildered. Liam yawned and checked his watch. Without another word he settled back into his seat and dropped his head onto her shoulder, switching off immediately.

?That left the conversation unresolved.? Bailey sighed and shifted her weight slightly, moving Liam?s head slightly higher up her shoulder.

Liam dozed on while the taxi picked its way carefully through the streets. Gradually more vehicles were on the road, delivery trucks mostly, but there was still evidence of the odd emergency vehicle. Dusty coming out, clean going in.

The taxi pulled up in front of the youth hostel, which was surprising, seeing as neither Bailey nor Liam had mentioned to the driver where to go. Bailey moved the comatose Liam slightly and leant forward, cash in hand. The driver turned round and winked.

?No charge love,? he said in a cockney accent. ?The SYF picks up the bill all the time.? He eyed Liam. ?You might want to keep an eye on that one,? he laughed, ?I?ve seen some weird travels with him. If it weren?t for that whole desert raid mess with the SYF, I?d still be piloting a Hercules now.? He grinned and pointed his thumb at himself. ?You?re looking at an all round metal man chauffer right now.?

He looked at Bailey as though any of this was supposed to make perfect sense. It didn?t. Bailey smiled, thanked him, and poked Liam awake.
[/size]

[The Harlequin]

[font=gothic][color=indigo]OOC: La da da di da, HEY! Let's not get too much more graphic people, by which I mean Raiha and Dave.

IC: [i]Katarina awoke, with a rather annoyed grunt, as an outstretched arm slapped onto her stomach as Malania collapsed onto the bed. Assuming that was the general wake up call, regardless of whatever the hell the time was, Katarina threw the arm off her with a little more force than was probably neccessary, but a morning person was not the best way to describe her. Fives rarely were. She rocked her body back so that only her shoulders were on the bed, then threw herself to her feet, immediately grabbing the bed and leaning against it as the lack of blood to the head caused to come incredibly close to unconsciousness. Which really just topped things off. In fact, this rather righteously sucked, and as usual, the best way to express that was with a long, truculent groan, followed by a string of vernacular laced with some slightly more vituperative interjections. Katarina eventually worked up the blood pressure to walk around, and, as with the again quasi-camatose Malania, her first stop was a long shower. That established and out of the way, she returned to the room and sat down on the bed, nudging Malania back into wakefulness. [/i]

Katarina: How iz ze fut?

Malania: Alright. I can walk, if painfully.

Katarina: Then we'll be straight forward about it.

Malania: Do we have to do this?

Katarina:....How ze hell did zat happen?

Malania: That accent, when compared to how you could talk, becomes even more atrocious...

Katarina: Vat can zyou do? Ve can kill some focking Russians....

[i]Interesting concept. Katarina leant forward, and pulled her shotun gun case from under the bed. She couldn't take the full ensemble, but a single Waste was normally capable of doing a lot of damage. Malania could take the other one if she wanted, Katarina didn't mind. The more important point was breaking into a computer somewhere and working out where the hell they were headed.[/font][/color][/i]

[Ravenstorture]

[color=darkgreen][font=gothic][i]Malania crawled away from the genocidal Katarina and navigated her way to the bathroom once more, running into the door frame before realising she was already showered. But not dressed. Malania groaned, turned around, and reached for her suitcase, yowling like a cat on heat (OOC: yeah, you know the way we do). Katarina looked up, saw the pathetic scene on the floor, and laughed. [/i]

Katarina: Vas there somsing?

Malania: Yoooowwwwllll....

Katarina: You hoff one good ankle. Use it or I vill take care of it, too.

[i]Malania jumped up, nimble and full of energy, and stretched quickly. Grabbing the first few things she felt in her pack, she slipped on a pair of loose black cotton pants, lightweight, and a longsleeved black t-shirt with PS2 logos on it. Finishing the look with a pair of black sneakers with elastic laces, one black and one white sock, and a bun on the crown of her head, Malania stretched again and unblocked the door, returning briefly to don a pair of smart matrixy sunglasses.
Kat finished what she was doing and looked up, smiling sardonically. [/i]

Malania: What?

Katarina: You look so much like her.

Malania: Who?

Katarina: Lutveya. You're a perfect match, right down to the hairstyle.

[i]Malania stared blankly ahead, into the corridor, for some time without reply. [/i]

Malania: ...I miss her...

[/color][/font]

[Lady Asphyxia]

[size=1]She stood staring in the direction Liam had left, then turned and made her way back down the hall. She was shivering, and cold. Rae turned down the corridor that would lead her to Callum, needing some sort of human contact.

Matt got to her first, taking her aside. 'Rae, you were the one who found Adam's program, weren't you?'

Rae nodded, resisting the urge to slip into her brother's arms for a nice big hug; this was business, not home. 'Yeah, I was. I shot down the computer though.'

'Do you have Adam's passwords?'

Again, she nodded. 'I always have. And I have his master overwrite code -- he never knew I had that. I'd need a techie, but I think he had it separated into two accounts, his public account and his private account. Sort of like in a web page. There's the public account, but then there's a level for anything you don't want anyone to be able to see. Why?'

'I just want a look. I need to see a few things about certain missions. The Commander's ordered me to check it out. But I think we'll need Callum as well. Let me get him.'

Rae waited while Matt continued down the hall to Callum's room, then returned with Callum trailing behind, slightly bleary. Well, that was reasonable. It [i]was[/i] somewhere near 6am.

She smiled at him weakly, and his eyes darkened in concern. Rae shrugged and turned to follow Matt. 'Where are we working?'

'In a specialized room. No one can come in or go out without my permission, which -- apart from you guys -- they won't get. There'll be one computer and three chairs waiting.'

Rae stared for a while, trying to figure out her brother. It was Callum who did. 'This is really important, isn't it?'

Matt dry-washed his face, then scrunched up his nose. 'Yeah. It is.'

They reached the room, and Matt punched in a security code, followed by an eye scan. They continued on, and just as predicted, there were three chairs, a desk, and a single computer in the room. The rest of the room was completely empty. There were no windows, one door. The ceiling was perfectly smooth, and the entire room was white. It was almost as if the room had been...'Sound proofed,' Rae breathed.

'Yeah,' Matt nodded. 'We're up in one of the higher levels, but this was originally made as a safe room in case SYF was attacked. Now we don't bother -- it wouldn't work anyway. All they'd need to do was plant a bomb underneath us and we'd all be dead.'

'What a comforting thought,' Callum remarked dryly, in such a Liam-esque tone that Rae stared at him in surprise.

Matt grinned at Callum. 'Yeah, well. I thought it was interesting. Anyway.'

He held out the middle chair for Rae -- the one right in front of the computer. 'Rae, deary, I need you to log us in and show us exactly what you did.'

Rae moved to the computer. 'As you guys should know, we all have accounts on this system. However, anyone who is a case manager has fool-proof accounts; no one can access them but the case manager and The Commander. Password only, I believe.' She looked at the men for confirmation. They both nodded. 'Well, I think Adam did something to his account -- you'd have to fiddle a bit and check it, Callum -- where he had a public account, that the Commander could access, and a private account, that only he, with his master code, could access.'

'When you mentioned Adam being an arrogant bastard, and probably having everything on the computer, something clicked. I mean, I've always had the overwrite code, I just never really knew what it was for.'

Rae typed in Adam's username, then moved to his password field. 'I've checked Adam's public files a few times, but nothing was there.'

'Anyway...' Rae typed in the master overwrite in the password field -- [i]pinecone[/i] -- and hit enter. 'Misson: Pinecone was Jess and Liam's first mission ever. It was named that because of Major Pine, the Commanding Officer at the time.'

Rae sat back in her chair, smiling slightly. 'Do you guys want it now?'

Matt looked at Callum, then shook his head. 'No, show me what made you think he had double levels.'

'Oh. Well, see, when you use the overwrite password, you get a folder called public in here. When you go into it,' She demonstrated, 'it's all the files you see with his normal password. To get back to where you were, you have to type in the overwrite again. Anyway, there are all these other files that I'd never seen before. And, of course, the file labelled, 'Hamlet' was obviously something about betrayals. Adam's mind always worked like that.'

'Thanks Rae. We'll take over from her. But stay in the room, okay? I might need you to help us with something.'

Callum stood at the same time as Rae, and gave her another peck on the cheek. When she moved over to the wall to sit down, he took her seat and started typing rapidly.

Rae started to doze, eyes closing slowly, trying not to fall asleep fully. Matt and Callum's voices droned in the background of her mind, and she let her head droop against the wall.

Suddenly, Matt's voice cried out in shock. [i]'Shit!'[/i] Rae jerked upright, eyes flying open.

'What?'

Callum, too, was looking worried. 'The program Adam used to send the e-mails to the Director and the Commander...'

Rae ran a hand through her hair. She knew all about those. 'What about it?'

'It's wired to send to three people, not two.'

'Who's the third person?'

Callum typed in a few keys, then hit enter. 'One 'Michael Prikrie.' Do you know who he was?'

'Yeah, he was head of security. He was there to make sure there were no leaks. He created the major fabrications, the lies that went to the media or to the papers and such. He was discharged about a year and a half, maybe two years ago, for selling classified SYF information.'

'[i]Shit[/i],' Matt swore.

'What? What is it?'

'It went to his private account, not the SYF one. Chances are, Michael Prikrie knows all about Liam and Jess. He has one more chance to sell SYF information.'

Rae put her head on her knees. This was all they needed.

[center]____________[/center]

[i]He had one more chance to make some money out of the SYF bastards.[/i]

Michael Prikrie picked up the phone and dialled the number on the card. 'Hi.' He said to the person on the other end. 'This is Michael Prikrie.'

He waited for the acknowledgement, then continued. 'You said to call if I had any information for you involving Liam Cameron.'

Again he waited, then continued.

'Well, I have something that will blow you away.'[/size]