004 - Undercover

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[Misaki shows up on the Plane, next to where she left her kitchen table during her first visit. There’s a stack of files and a large, crumpled-up map under her arm; once again, she looks very, very pissed.
She slams the files down and spreads the map across the table; it’s an overview of Tokyo, marked with red and blue dots in eight locations (four of each), and outlined in a grid. She weighs the corners down with a few polished rocks from her pockets and sits, dragging the files toward herself.]

Comments

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[She sighs and rubs her face with both hands. Without speaking, she tosses one of the files to Hei.]

[contract_star]

[Hei catches it, vaguely surprised. He flips it open and reads the contents. Inside is a picture of a young boy, next to a Messier code and a list of abilities. Hei frowns.]

This is a Contractor.

[He skims over the rest of the file, and slowly his eyes widen.]

Since when does Section Four use Contractors?

[He snaps the file closed and sets it back on the desk, keeping his hand on it as he mulls things over. He isn't looking at her. Eventually his expression goes cold.]

Bait. Of course. Just tools, after all.

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[She grits her teeth. When she speaks, it comes out as a snarl.] Don't start.

The government has been employing contractors since the Hell's Gate incident--everyone who didn't want to be executed was drafted into service. They've continued the practice since. The number of child contractors has been rising as well. They consider this an opportunity to test them.

[contract_star]

[Is silent for awhile, since he knows that she feels the same way as he does, and he doesn't want to start a fight.]

That incident must have been truly...[Trails off, unable to find the words.]

If they're proper Contractors, some of them will betray you. Run to a syndicate for protection.

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[At that, she's silent.] Maybe. We have enough other contractors on hand to kill them if that should happen.

[There's a definite tang of sarcasm in her words.]

[contract_star]

[Frowns at her, sensing that something is off.]

I'm surprised actually that the Syndicate allowed the Japanese government to start utilizing Contractors at all...it would indicate that the public is starting to become aware of their existence. The Syndicate doesn't want that, unless their goals change a year from now...

[Yes, he's fishing.]

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[Totally expected it and ignores the hook.] The fact that the Syndicate doesn't want to move publicly at all is an advantage on our part. The public is still largely unaware of the existence of Contractors--and if they wanted to stop us, the Syndicate would need a very public display of power.

[contract_star]

[Not letting up,] But they have their hooks in every branch of the Japanese government. There's no way they would have allowed this in the first place. Too many loose ends, too many people going home to blab to husbands, wives, children, friends, about people with superpowers.

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[Hard.] I am not going to tell you about the future, Li-san.

[contract_star]

[Looks away as it dawns on him.]

They're gone in your world. Whatever happened at the Gate, it made the Syndicate...

[Runs a hand through his hair.] I can't believe this...

[After awhile.] So Contractors have no one now. No one but the government. No choice. [Pauses.] They must hate that.

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

I was a part of it. [There's a sting of self-hatred in it.] I'm not sorry for bringing down those... bastards, but I caused a domino effect. Took out a number of prominent governmental agency heads. They were replaced, and the Syndicates tactics adopted openly. They've started running commercials about "enhanced law enforcement" that's "augmented by discoveries within the Gate," as a way of introducing Contractors gradually to the public.

[Disgusted face.] I'm lucky I didn't lose my job. Or get demoted at the very least.

[contract_star]

How? How did you manage to stop them?

[But then he shakes his head.] No, future, I know. Never mind.

[He's quiet for awhile, trying to get his head around the fact that the Syndicate is going to be gone in less than a year.]

This...Contractor you're chasing. I take it he or she is a rogue. Someone from the Syndicate who didn't take well to the changes.

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

Don't know. We actually think it's someone who appeared after the fact--we had info on almost all of the Contractors involved with the EPR, and even if we haven't caught them, we still have an idea of their location and whether or not they've been active.

[contract_star]

[Face contorts a little at the mention of the EPR, but he forces himself to relax.]

Is there any indication of what abilities they have? What about Messier codes? Or clues at the sites, at least?

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

If they're using their abilities to place the bodies, we've not seen physical evidence of it. And there are too many active Messier codes these days to make them particularly useful.

[contract_star]

But the Astronomy Division has always been good at tracking star fluctuations. [And doesn't he know it :|] Unless there's something about this Contractor that makes them hard to trace?

An ability like that would be telekinesis, maybe air manipulation...are you still registering known Contractors?

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[She grits her teeth.] Of course we're still registering them. When we're allowed to. The government is employing them large-scale now, remember? That includes black ops.

[contract_star]

[Bitterly,] So things haven't changed much. Still the lies and secrecy, still doing the dirty work, still--

[Cuts himself off abruptly and pinches the bridge of his nose.]

I'm sorry.

[He looks up again but doesn't look at her, staring into the distance.]

I probably shouldn't be involving myself in this at all.

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[She doesn't look at him.] Don't apologize for being right.

[She sighs.] Probably not. But I can't help being glad that there's someone here I can talk to who understands all the implications of what I'm saying.

[contract_star]

[He glances at her and smiles, just a little.]

If only I could get into your world--I might be able to catch this bastard. Although...[Trails off, rubbing his chin.]

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

Although...?

[contract_star]

Well, I've been trying to keep my reality from merging with anyone else's, but I suppose with you it doesn't matter.

Also, well...[Looks away, thinking of how to phrase this.] I wouldn't be much help without my team.

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[Smiles a little.] Your team, huh...

[contract_star]

I'm not giving names, just so you know.

[He's smiling a little now too.] They're an odd bunch, and we don't really get along that well, but we help each other. For the job if nothing else.

[chasingstars201.livejournal.com]

[She gives him a dryly amused look.] I wouldn't expect you to.

And it sounds like a good team. There's always a little friction in a group of necessarily different people.