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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 0:56:34 GMT
3-29-2189- 1.1
"What can you find about the Onyx Organization?"
"The same thing I've found for the past four weeks. Nothing has changed in the company's patterns or the people working for them. It's weird, they're occasionally stopping one chip, then tuning it back in a matter of hours. You don't think that's their permanent plan, do you?"
"It can't be. The way they've upped their security tells me that they're already onto you. That being said, you're leaving too much a trace, how can you fix that?"
"I don't see why you're asking me that. If I already knew then I would have done it." The woman responded with a tone of mild annoyance. "I understand that you want to protect Eris and do good by Lecia because you think you have to fix my mistakes, but you need to understand that I'm not a child anymore. I don't need you or Eris to cover for me when I do wrong, I need to fix it myself."
There was one thing Joseph picked up on as Elizabeth spoke; she was hurt, whether it be by his words or her own thoughts, that much was unknown to him. "I get it, I just think you've been isolating yourself too much. You've become reliant on your job when you really need to become-"
She spun the chair she was in around and took to her feet. "I knew that was why you really came here today. You don't care about the Onyx Organization and you would rather me not look into it. That's not going to happen so long as they're still a threat." She stopped and took a deep breath. "I don't know if you think you're doing good by yourself, by Lecia, or even my parents, but stop it. You'll be doing better by everyone if you just leave me to do my job."
"You mentioned something about a member of the Onyx Organization at the last meeting before Lecia cut you off, what were you going to say?" The best thing Joseph could do for himself and Elizabeth was stop the conversation.
She sighed before returning to her seat and spinning back to face the monitors. "As if you care. Never mind that, there's a man who works for the Onyx Organization whose body is pretty much machine. I have reason to believe that he'll be a problem to us. He's rising through their ranks pretty quick."
"You can get into their systems, can't you do something with his body?"
"Not really. Everything has limits and he hasn't gotten in my limits to where I can do anything. Even when he does, it'll probably be too late before I can do anything." Elizabeth checked her watch and then slowly rose from her seat. "I think I need to go do something, away from here."
"You mean like a break?" Joseph watched as she started shutting down the systems, her timing causing a slight worry in him.
As she finished with the monitors she shrugged and walked past him. "I guess you can call it that."
He knew better than to try to stop her at this point so he let her leave without another word.
Joseph left the lab after Elizabeth, going to the kitchen where Eris would inevitably be.
Eris was easily the wisest of the group, having learned a lot in her few years of life that would likely be cut short anyways. She looked pale as always, her thin blonde hair put in a ponytail. She was quick to acknowledge Joseph's arrival, stopping her current task. "Any luck?"
"If you consider waking the beast from the seventh layer of Hell luck then yes, tons of it. Tons of progress made too."
She gave a soft smile, picking up on his sarcastic tone with ease. "You've been spending too much time with her, you're getting the attitude too." Eris crossed her arms, her smile returning to a neutral tone. "You're going about it the wrong way. Being direct may work for everyone else because you're the leader, but Elizabeth just doesn't care. She's been that way since we first met her, hasn't she? We let her get away with it then, there's no way she'll change now."
"I don't think that's it. I think she's been condemned for too long and she's used to people getting upset at her for things that she doesn't even do so her only response is to get upset before someone else does."
"It seems... probable, I guess. I do have a question. She seemed pretty irritable, I already know that much, but how much did she talk?"
"Plenty, why?"
Eris snickered before covering her mouth. "Lecia's gonna flip. Elizabeth told me about a little plan of hers a few months ago about the Onyx Organization and she said it should be ready around early April. I figured she was just pulling some joke since she still believes in the old holidays, but I guess she actually did it." She uncovered her mouth. "Elizabeth's plan was to spread propaganda about the Onyx Organization. She figured you were going to get mad about it so she didn't tell you."
A series of realizations hit Joseph as Eris finished talking. "She figured I was going to get mad? Of course I'm going to get mad about that, she's bringing unnecessary attention to us! Why didn't you tell me about this earlier?"
"I didn't think she would actually do it." Eris's eyes shot up, looking to the corner of the room, causing Joseph's eyes to follow.
The camera. It picked up everything from audio to visuals and part of Elizabeth's job entailed going through it all. "That doesn't matter, I'm going to mention this when she gets back and I'll be damned if I let her get away with it."
A look that consisted of a mixture of fear and surprise crossed Eris's face as she looked back to Joseph. "I don't think that's a good idea. Her heart was in the right place and she's got the right idea. If we don't talk about what we know then we won't make any progress towards our goal. To have our voices truly heard, we need more people."
"Her heart was in the right place when she decided what to do with Jonas and look where that got her. Lecia and Cyrus hate her for what happened that day. I swear, she doesn't learn."
"First, that was two years ago, you and Lecia both need to stop assuming that because she made one bad choice that she's bound to make another bad one. Second, that's not true. Cyrus hates her because she's a higher level of authority than he is, the same reason he doesn't like you. The difference is he respects you but he knows he doesn't have to respect her." Eris sighed. "I can't deny that that's why Lecia hates her, though, but at least she understands that much."
"Nice try trying to get me off topic, by the way, it's not going to work. It's about time she starts to understand that she's not going to get away with everything she does, especially since her job is to keep us out of danger when she's the one putting us in danger."
Eris didn't seem willing to give up on the conversation as quickly as Joseph had hoped for. "You don't get it, she's putting herself in the most danger here and she's doing it to protect us. She left after the message spread in the case that the Onyx Organization tracks it back. She set something up with that stupid program to where it'll trace directly to her and not to the bunker." She stopped, seeming to get a little upset. "Joseph, I can't stand what she puts herself through to make things easier for us, but it worked out plenty of times before and it's continuing to work out, so I think we should let her handle this and stay out of the way."
This choice decided Joseph would stick with his plan and confront Elizabeth.
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 1:15:49 GMT
1.2
It was a daily task for Ethan. Checking his e-mail, hoping for word on a job.
Most days there would be nothing in general, which never really upset him. It was the employers who were missing out, not him.
After Ethan had left his last job abruptly, he was given two months to find a new one or there would be serious consequences for him. His two months were over on the sixth of April.
Checking his e-mail today was no different, no news of a job, only some scattered e-mails over different things. He started deleting the useless letters in his inbox, but one struck his eye as he went to delete it: 'The Onyx Organization. What's the truth?'
No matter what day it was, he never received an e-mail from the Onyx Organization themselves, they would normally send a representative. Ethan figured it was important if it had something to do with the Onyx Organization, perhaps they were giving him more time to find a job. He opened the e-mail to find that the sender was an unknown person, not somebody from the Onyx Organization.
The Onyx Organization has been handling our nation for 103 years this coming August, so what better way can I help celebrate their anniversary than by helping them get the truth to the people they're 'protecting'.
102 years, 7 months, and 7 days ago the Onyx Organization was founded. They made promises of how they would handle not only their lives but the lives of citizens as well. These promises included a more vicious judicial system, prohibition, and a rule with an iron fist.
Don't get me wrong, other nations have other organizations, they're not free either. Long before the Onyx Organization had taken over, there was the common belief in something called freedom, which the Onyx Organization doesn't offer. I'm sure almost everyone remembers some person in a suit with empty eyes coming to their home when they were of age and telling them they had six months to get a job or they'd be punished.
The Onyx Organization has had an unbelievably tight grip on the mind of citizens everywhere, even going to the point of monitoring who sends what e-mail. It better be important or it's not getting through their servers and they don't think e-vites are important, so don't blame your buddies, blame the monitors.
You're probably wondering, how did this message get through the servers? It didn't.
Many members of the Onyx Organization have been privileged since birth, they have no idea what troubles they're forcing onto citizens. Note: Yes, many members, not all.
That's not to mention the kicker, though. Has a family member of yours disappeared recently? Perhaps a grandparent, a sibling, or even a friend? Well, don't count on them coming back. The Onyx Organization has doctors who handle sickness, but they don't treat it, not at all. They quarantine the sick, the elderly, anyone who disagrees with their way of life.
How do they do it? Nobody stops them. On the 65th birthday of anybody, they get visited by a member of the Onyx Organization who claims that they'll be taking them out to celebrate their birthday, right? They never come back and families don't think to question it because of how much they believe in the Onyx Organization.
Anybody with a sickness who has made their sickness known is taken off as well. Again, nobody questions it. Oh, and you would think that confiding in the boss of your work that you're a tad bit ill and need some time off would slip by the Onyx Organization, right? No, that's not right.
Every single person in charge of any business is a member of the Onyx Organization and is required to report any 'bad behavior' or sickness to higher-ups. They're also required to keep a detailed file on all of their employees in the Onyx Organization's database. And no, nepotism can't save you from the law, sorry.
People who work for the Onyx Organization always seem like they're missing something, right? You've seen them. Suits, empty eyes, clammy skin, an overall cold aura. They're not really people. They're under the control of the Onyx Organization, but not the same way you guys are. They're under microchip control, given an exact order through a microchip, constantly being tracked and monitored. They don't have a mind of their own.
And finally, I would like to finish off by saying what I've been hinting at this whole time, the Onyx Organization is not to be trusted. They're watching your every move and they are likely going to react sometime soon.
By reading this, you're in danger, but I'm not sorry to put you through this. The Onyx Organization is watching your history, but so am I. If you look up certain phrases, a scout team will be sent to your location. With luck, they'll reach you before the Onyx Organization.
The phrases can be found very early in this e-mail and are actually your only chances at freedom right now. I urge you to do what's best. -VE
Ethan froze, a chill causing him to shake for a moment. "It's not real, this is fake..." He spoke to himself. "I shouldn't do it. I don't even know who sent this, it's not real and the phrases are just going to get me in trouble."
He pulled up a search engine in another tab and stopped his hands before his fingers hit the keys. "There's no way they would get through the servers. It's some sort of awful joke."
Returning his hand to the mouse, he went back to the tab his e-mail had stayed in, only to be greeted by an error screen. Sorry! This e-mail doesn't exist!
With no other choice, he closed the tab and went back to the search engine, the phrases repeating in his mind. "Onyx Organization vicious not free" He said it out loud and then snickered. "Well that's choppy, and probably fake."
Ethan found his hands still hovering over the keys, ready to type. "No, I need to look for a job, I've only got a week left."
He stared at the empty search engine.
A choice here decided Ethan would search up the keywords.
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 1:18:45 GMT
Crowd Control- 1.3
"Mr. Richardson! What can you tell us about the recent hack?"
"Mr. Richardson! What is the plan for the Onyx Organization now?"
"Is what was said in the e-mails true?"
A man stood in front of the Onyx Organization headquarters with his eyes closed as he took in the questions. He opened his eyes and sighed, a shorter woman with brunette hair to his left and a guard to his right. "I'll only take one question at a time after I tell what I already know. Settle down and I'll begin." The crowd went quiet and Anthony cleared his throat, getting ready to address the people. "I'm sure you all know Naomi and I, so I'll be skipping introductions. You're all here because of the alleged breech that happened yesterday. There was no breech, it was a sabotage used by the resistance group known as the Voyagers. It was tagged by one of their members and we already have people tracking where the e-mail was sent from."
Anthony motioned for a man to step forward. A man much shorter than Anthony replaced the guard to his right. Anthony stepped back and the man stepped forward once more with a demeanor more serious than anyone standing before the building. "My name is Luke Lowell, I'm in charge of the ongoing investigation relating to the Voyagers. I can't give you all the details, but I can say that these people cannot be trusted. They're spreading lies in an attempt to gain control for reasons unknown. They're more active now than they've been in the past which makes me believe that they're facing some sort of danger of their own. Believe me when I say that we're going to exploit that danger and make sure that they understand that they're not to be so disruptive."
"How many of them are there?" Someone spoke from the crowd, Luke quickly scanning the people to see who spoke.
"Ma'am, I can't offer you a certain answer, but so far we've made note of at least four members, including the sender of the e-mail. It would make sense for them to be in a panic with only four members. Their goal is to have bigger numbers, which doesn't include four." Luke continued looking over the crowd, watching for any suspicious person.
"What do you know about the members?" The same woman spoke up, a seemingly unsure tone in her voice.
Luke narrowed his eyes to the woman who spoke, toning out the rest of the crowd. "That there are four of them, what else do you want me to say?"
Anthony whispered something to the woman next to him before leaning closer to Luke, his voice retaining the whisper. "Is something wrong?"
Both the men turned away from the crowd and huddled close. "She's pretty nosy for a recent event. I couldn't get a reading on her, so it's likely that she's somehow involved."
Anthony shook his head. "I disagree. She doesn't seem to share any resemblance to the members we've interrogated before. She seems bolder than they ever were by drawing attention to herself, it's unlike those cowards."
Luke nodded, dismissing himself from his talk with Anthony and returning to his position in front of the crowd. "Of the four, there's only one that makes a constant reoccurrence, that would be the VE who sent the e-mail. The other three have rarely been reported, but they're known to be seen in person rather than using the other's form of communication."
"How have they not been caught yet if they're out and about?" A man spoke up from the crowd, seeming upset with the answers he had gotten. "That seems a little dangerous and irresponsible of the Onyx Organization."
"They haven't been caught because we're told about it long after they leave the area. We can't catch what we haven't seen, but that's going to change once we catch VE. When the first one goes down, the rest will just surrender. It'll be a domino effect and nothing will be able to stop it. I won't be answering any more questions."
Luke stepped back, allowing Anthony to resume his spot. "Thank you, Mr. Lowell. For anyone who had received the e-mail, I urge you to report it immediately. If any of you hold knowledge of the Voyagers and aren't reporting it, you'll be held for treason." The woman next to him took a step closer to him, both of them waiting for the crowd to ease again. "Before we dismiss this conference, Naomi and I would like to announce our engagement. The wedding will be set in the near future and our families are overjoyed at our decision for the future. Right now we request the privacy for ourselves and our families, but we couldn't just withhold exciting news like that."
Joseph Duke
Six members sat around the dinner table, each awaiting something new. The scouts were told to remain in the bunker until Elizabeth had returned, which didn't seem to be happening since she left two days before.
Joseph looked over the members of the group, each having their own stories and their own personalities. Eris sat in the middle of the left side of the table, his wife, she believed in him but she also believed in Elizabeth, which seemed to be a contradiction in itself. Lecia Albero sat to her right. Lecia had no faith in Elizabeth, but had a good bit of respect for Joseph.
On the other side of the table were the scouts. Cyrus was the oldest of them, but had a huge lack of respect for Elizabeth despite working for her. The two remaining scouts seemed to be close friends of Elizabeth and would likely be the only two to cause a problem if Joseph ended up sending Elizabeth off. Marshal seemed to be the closest friend Elizabeth had in the bunker, but was also loyal to the cause of the Voyagers. Filip was the youngest of the Voyagers in general, he managed to get on everyone's nerves from time to time, but he meant well.
"She should be arriving sometime soon." Cyrus had been providing updates from the watch the was programmed to give away the locations of anyone who left the bunker, Filip and Marshal had been reluctant to do so.
Eris wouldn't even look at Joseph, but she had a guilty look fixed on her face. "It's not too late to back out on this. She's coming back, so that means we're in no significant danger."
"It is too late. From what we've been told, you said it yourself that she had something set up to where it would trace back to her. For all we know she's working for the Onyx Organization. That wouldn't be a shock either." Lecia spoke up, disagreeing with Eris just to spite Elizabeth.
Marshal had looked nervous, but overall disappointed the entire time Joseph had filled the group in on the details. He never normally spoke up, but he had seemed more outspoken as Joseph's opinion had shifted on Elizabeth in the past two days. "Yeah, she's definitely using us as an immunity from the Onyx Organization. Lecia, that's stupid. They want her more than they want any of us."
Cyrus snickered, turning his attention away from the watch. "Now that you mention it, that does seem possible. She's a liar and she wasn't to be trusted from the start."
Eris looked to Joseph with prodding eyes as the conversation continued on. "Aren't you going to say anything?" He shook his head, reluctant to get involved.
"That's funny considering you were the one who had this entire idea. You're the one who had it out for her since she left." Marshal seemed bitter in the tone of his voice, his posture confirming it.
"Think about it, Marshal, she never leaves becuase she's in trouble with the Onyx Organization but she can finally sell us out because she finally figured a way to get us in the same place. She's going to sell us out, every one of us." Lecia put her arms on the table and leaned forward, lowering her voice. "Just like her parents tried to do."
Filip seemed to be more offended by the comment than Marshal was, surprising the rest of the members by jumping in. "I'm ashamed that you, of all people, a mother would say that. You should know better than any of us that a parent's actions don't predict a child's actions. You have no right to speak on this considering you only want to hurt her, you don't know her nearly as well as any of the rest of us."
"He's right.. That's like saying that you're going to outright disappear one day because Morgan did." Marshal added on, knowing that the statement would strike Lecia and get her to stop.
Eris looked to be growing more tired as the argument commenced. She eventually got up from her seat, refusing to acknowledge Joseph's attempts at talking her into staying. "I've never seen any of you so spiteful. It's absolutely disgusting to me and I'm not going to remain here and watch this. Joseph, if you're really going to put it to a vote, of all things, you're going to reach a stand still, but I want her to stay. You've got my vote and I'm making no contribution to this hateful talk, so I'm going to bed."
After Eris left, the room had gone silent until a voice spoke up from the front. "Jeez, a vote? Huh... I didn't really see myself as a problem, I'm sorry."
Elizabeth walked past Joseph and took a seat at the end of the table in between Filip and Lecia, barely acknowledging anyone near her. "Elizabeth, I'm giving you one chance to explain yourself, that's all you have and you've got a limited amount of time to do it."
She didn't look at anyone around her, simply shrugging in response. "I don't know what you want me to say. Everyone here has biased opinions already and I can't change that." She paused. "Oh, you guys aren't in any danger, don't worry about that. I made sure of it."
Lecia seemed to be staring daggers at Elizabeth, expecting something more of an answer. "How did you do that if you weren't at the computer?"
"It's too complicated to explain right now." She seemed to shrink into her chair. "I don't like what any of you had to say, whether it was in my defense or not. Eris was right, it was too hateful. Marshal, it was disrespectful for you to bring up stuff that you know is going to hurt her, so I expect to hear some sort of apology. Filip, you too, the way you called her out was just as disrespectful as what she said about me."
The two men exchanged a glance, both consisting more of worry than anything else before nodding and each apologizing to Lecia.
"Lecia, I don't care about what you said about me, mainly because most of it is true. I'm a failure, just like my parents, but I would never sell you guys out." She turned her attention to Cyrus, looking up for the first time since she'd gotten there. "Cyrus, the same goes for you. I understand why you guys are upset with me and I'm sorry there's nothing I can do to change it."
Joseph's pacing lead him to the opposite end of the table where he caught a glimpse of Elizabeth's face. She seemed tired, she was dirty, but overall she seemed damaged. "Elizabeth, stop."
"Please." Marshal chimed in, his own tone seeming smaller than before.
Elizabeth shook her head. "Well, your vote, let's get on with it."
"No, this doesn't have to happen right now, you need to get rest." Joseph noticed that Cyrus looked to be examining Elizabeth through her words and her expressions.
"He's right, it doesn't." Cyrus finally spoke up from his end of the table. "I've been watching you since you came in, but I have a question." He waited until she looked back to him before he continued. "You're not planning to do something stupid, are you?"
She feigned a chuckle. "Depends what you consider stupid."
"You know what I consider stupid. Just know that your entire purpose here is to protect the bunker and the people inside it and if you end up dying for some stupid reason caused by yourself, you'll be at fault for whatever happens."
"That's not necessarily true. Final Product Four is programmed to take over in case something happens to me and it's also programmed to do the work just like I do, so nothing will really change." She sighed. "In fact, while I was gone it was Final Product Four that was watching over you guys, obviously not me."
The only person in the room who didn't seem to be even the lightest bit concerned was Lecia. In fact, she still seemed upset. "The vote. Let's do it since she's willing. I think we'd be safer without her."
"We don't have to go through this. By listening to how you've all spoken about me tonight, it's a three to three vote, Joseph remains undecided." Elizabeth looked back down to the table. "In all honesty, it doesn't really matter. I planned to isolate myself after I came back to keep you guys from getting involved. I can continue on with that plan or I can leave, it's up to Joseph."
"How is it three to three if Joseph is undecided?" Filip spoke up, his eyes telling a whole story of fear and sadness.
"You, Eris, and Marshal want me to stay. Lecia, Cyrus, and myself want me to leave. That's three to three." Elizabeth paused. "I complicated things, I'm sorry."
"Why do you want to leave? You've said it yourself, it's safer here than anywhere else." Filip didn't seem willing to let Elizabeth go easily.
"Because if I hadn't complicated things, there would be no vote about this."
Joseph froze, looking over his companions. Elizabeth was punishing herself, she didn't need Joseph to do it for her. Cyrus was right, there seemed to be a fair chance of Elizabeth doing something to further harm herself and the group. Lecia wouldn't care if she did, but the same couldn't be said for Filip, Marshal, or Eris. It would tear them apart.
If Elizabeth were to stay, she would need someone to stay by her side. Someone who was by her side anyways. Joseph could easily make Marshal do it, but that wouldn't mean she would be completely safe from herself.
If she were to leave then she would be free to do whatever she wants, but she would be taking whatever knowledge she has of the Voyagers with her into an open world where they want Voyagers dead more than anything.
A choice here decided Joseph would have Elizabeth stay with the group.
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 1:30:51 GMT
1.4
After the unsettling news about the Onyx Organization, Ethan left the computer for the day, keeping his head low in the case that the Onyx Organization already knew about the e-mail.
Word didn't reach Ethan about any other e-mail or any news reports about it, so he went back to the computer the next day. The keywords rang in his mind, over and over again.
He took a deep breath, keeping his hands over the keyboard. "It's been a full day, what are the chances that they're still watching?" What convinced Ethan fully watching the feeling that he was already being watched. By who or what, he didn't know. "Only one way to find out."
Ethan quickly typed in the keywords and hit enter, the results flashing up on his screen.
How corrupt is our system really? A news article. Published by a freelance journalist by the name of Leah Neil. My husband has been a very active donator to the Onyx Organization (even though I doubt they need donations to keep themselves going.) and he tells me often of the things he sees when he goes down to their headquarters.
Ethan turned away from the computer, grabbing a notepad on the other side of his desk and a pen that sat next to it. He drew quick circles on the paper until he saw the ink had reached the paper. He took note of Leah Neil and the donations before returning his vision to the computer.
It's sad, really, it is. He once told me of a girl who didn't seem much older than either of our children. He mentioned how she looked to be paper thin, almost as if she was a cardboard cutout. He said she was dirty and she sat in the lobby, crying for help. He approached her and she told him about what happened to her parents and how they just vanished one day. After that he said a man in a suit jerked the girl away and she only continued sobbing as she was taken to the elevator.
After some time, my husband became friends with a higher-up in the organization and he asked about the little girl in the lobby only for the man to tell him that it had nothing to do with my husband. He confessed that the girl's parents were resistance members who had been caught and were being dealt with properly and he left it at that.
The entire week after that, our children came home from school saying how they had felt like they were being watched, and I must say, I felt the same feeling every once in a while, but we never really acknowledged the danger that my husband had put us in by trying to find out about the girl. On the last night of the week, my husband's friend had come to our home and told us that he needed to speak with us. We trusted him and left the kids at home to go with him, thinking it would only be twenty minutes at most.
It was three days. Three brutal days that I would never wish on anybody else.
We were taken to the fourth floor where my husband saw the young girl again, pointing her out to me. She was surrounded by other people who looked to be in bad condition as well. My husband's friend said he was going to get us some drinks and he would be back. That was before he locked us in the room until the next morning.
He asked so many questions about people we had no relation to, mainly the young girl. He asked about and organization called the Voyagers, which we had no idea about at the time.
On the third day our children had gotten in trouble with the school and I was allowed to go back home, but my husband wasn't. I came home to find the house completely torn up, my son trying to work with the washing machine and my daughter trying to figure out how the stove turned on. They asked me questions about where I had been and where their father was, but I didn't offer much of an answer. I could tell it upset them, but what was I supposed to say?
In the middle of the night there was this knock at the door. A man who stood about as tall as myself greeted me. He said his name was Cyrus and that he was there for a good cause. He informed me about the Voyagers and told me some secrets of the Onyx Organization that made me lose hope faster than anything had ever done before. He invited me to join the Voyagers, saying the kids would be allowed as well. I asked what could be done about my husband and told him the situation and he went quiet for a few minutes before telling me that nothing could be done and that it would be safer for the kids and I to leave.
So we did. I packed three bags and we took off. We've been among the Voyagers for two years now, each of us earning our own place in the group. I've learned so many things about the Onyx Organization that it's truly sickening that nobody has taken a stand against them.
The next paragraph was separated by an edit note. 6/16/2170: Today I told the kids my plan of going back to the headquarters to get their dad. I figured they would think it was a good idea but they seemed concerned. They're so different from each other. She has tried to talk me out of it time after time but he understands that no matter what he says that I'm going to do it anyways so he gave up. He does care, though. I've put this off for too long, it's time.
Joseph Duke
"Elizabeth, you're staying." Cyrus seemed to shrug off the order as he dismissed himself from the room, but Lecia left the room in a hurry.
Filip looked ready to leave long before the meeting concluded. "As unnecessary as that was, we should look on the bright side. We won't be losing any information if she stays around and we'll probably get new members."
"Not anytime soon." Joseph's cold tone caused Filip to look to his hands. "I didn't say she was completely off the hook." He directed his vision to Elizabeth, who still wouldn't meet his eyes. "You're in terrible condition. I want you to go get cleaned up, get some food, and go to bed. In fact, I don't want you to, I'm ordering you to. Stay away from the lab for a few days."
"How am I supposed to sleep and stay away from the lab?" She didn't sound upset by the verdict, just tired.
"Marshal, you're going to go into the lab and get her what she needs from there. I'm trusting you to take care of her for a while."
Elizabeth and Marshal shared a glance before redirecting their vision back to Joseph. "She's an adult, she can take care of herself."
Joseph looked to Filip, expecting him to chime in. "I agree with Marshal, she's an adult, but you're basically grounding her as if she's a child and encouraging Marshal to be some sort of babysitter."
"Okay, I'll stay and I'll stick around Marshal if you give me one request." She didn't wait for a response, making the request seem quite important. "The keywords were used and it's critical that the scouts go get this guy. I know it doesn't sound important, but I'm the one who put his life in danger and if I can't go help him myself then the scouts need to go."
"No, that's not going to happen. Nobody is leaving tonight."
Filip seemed shocked with Joseph's response. "Joseph, somebody could be put in grave danger because of us, we need to handle this.."
"Filip, it wasn't us, it was Elizabeth. We had nothing to do with her choices."
"You might not have anything to do with it, but we did." Marshal quickly took to Filip's aid, knowing that he would back out the second Joseph told him no. "She kept us scouts updated on the status of her plan so we knew when to act."
"Besides, Elizabeth is one of us, so if you want to be technical, it is on all of us." Filip excused himself from the table before Joseph could respond, heading to find Cyrus.
Joseph sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Marshal, you're not doing this. I gave you a job and you have no choice in the matter because I am in charge. I will not stand here and listen to anymore of this." He turned towards Elizabeth, receiving a cold glare the second their eyes met. "You're lucky I let you stay. One more chance is all you're getting, am I clear?"
"That's what you said last time." She responded with an ounce of spite in her tone as Joseph left the room. She immediately scurried from her chair and to Marshal's side. "You guys need to go, right now."
Ethan Rikard
After looking up various pages on the Onyx Organization and the Voyagers, Ethan had ended up staying up late into the night. The last glimpse of the clock he had gotten said it was around ten in the night, now it said it was three in the morning.
Nobody had come to his home at this point, which made him believe his earlier thoughts of this all being a prank that he unfortunately became the victim of, wasting another day of his job search.
Ethan shut down the computer and left his room, going to the kitchen. As he left the hallway, going towards the kitchen doorway, he was grabbed from behind and jerked to the ground. He barely had time to react before shoving an elbow at his attacker, causing them to let go and stumble back a few steps.
He got off the ground in a hurry, turning to face the attacker while moving towards the kitchen. The attacker was a man who stood a few inches shorter than Ethan with brown hair. He was holding his arm over his chest, letting Ethan knew that he didn't miss a mark.
As Ethan was studying the attacker and continuing towards the kitchen slowly, the attacker looked up and around Ethan, forcing his posture back up. "Wait, stop!"
Ethan spun around and stopped in his tracks, seeing another man with black hair cautiously approaching him. "Alright, you know we're here now, let's talk, okay?"
The first man stumbled down the hall, leaning on the wall as he reached the end. "You've got your strength going for you, that's for sure." He sounded to be in pain by the tone of his voice.
"Ethan Rikard, that's you, right?" The man with black hair stood a few feet away from Ethan, waiting until he got a nod in response until he continued. "My name is Marshal Kennedy, the man you somehow debilitated is named Filip Cloet." Ethan looked to Filip, getting a small wave, before looking back to Marshal. "We're with the Voyagers. I know that was a pretty bad first meeting, but I think we have just enough time to explain it."
"Please do." Ethan tried forcing his nerves to settle in hopes of not showing any fear to the men.
"VE sent us, but we were told that the possibility that the Onyx Organization had already gotten into your place was pretty strong since we were leaving late. We were told to stay on guard until we knew it was you and I mean no offense when I say this, but Filip is as blind as a bat and he was going off of sound."
Ethan looked to Filip who scoffed at the comment, not offering any words. "You were going to attack me as well, weren't you?"
"Only because he did it first."
"And what are you guys here for?"
Filip finally moved his arm from his chest, putting it to his side. "We're here for you. By now you've made your choice and you're extremely lucky the Onyx Organization hasn't come before us. That's not to say that they won't come, because they will and the fury of Hell itself will come down on you, so I'd suggest you come with us."
Like the e-mail had said, a scout team. "Alright, let me go grab a bag."
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 3:00:05 GMT
1.5
After Ethan hastily threw some outfits into a dufflebag that his closet had hidden for what was likely ages, he returned to Filip and Marshal. The two remained in the same place Ethan had left them, not moving an inch. "I'm ready when you guys are."
"Funny, we were about to say the same thing." Filip turned around and started towards the door, Ethan following close behind him while keeping an eye on Marshal, who was a few steps behind him. "If you don't want to hold your things then Marshal can take them. we've got a small walk to make, then there's a truck. The truck will take us the rest of the way."
The three men walked out the door, Marshal closing it behind him. Ethan noted the two seemed to be in a formation which encouraged him to slip in between the two. "How certain are you guys that the truck won't be tracked?"
"Pretty certain. The location and the transportation are out of the way of just about everything and the things it's in the way of aren't typically active at three or four in the morning." Filip seemed to have taken over the talking as he caught his breath again. "Are you okay with running with your bag?"
"I wasn't counting on it, why?" Ethan looked around, seeing nothing but darkness and ooccassionally a porch light on.
"You should probably give Marshal your stuff then. We're about to have to run and if there's any chance that it'll slow you down then there'll be trouble for all of us."
"What if it slows him down? He's smaller than me."
Ethan heard Marshal chuckle from behind before Filip continued talking. "You don't have to worry about him. He'll somehow end up at the truck before us in the case that we get separated, he'll offer no explanation, and then we'll go back to the plan. Marshal's obsessed with fitness and between you and me, I'm not entirely convinced he wasn't a bank robber in a past life."
"I'm not obsessed, Filip, I'm just motivated."
"Yeah, motivated every waking moment of your life, Ethan and I can totally relate to that." Ethan could tell that these two were pretty close friends by the way they talked. Marshal didn't seem offended by what Filip said and Filip didn't seem offended earlier by what Marshal said.
"I don't know who can't relate to that, I mean it's definitely normal."
Filip snickered as he stopped walking. "I want to know your definition of normal when we get to the truck." Filip turned to Ethan, his face taking a darker, more serious turn. "This is your last chance to hand your stuff over to Marshal. After we start running, whatever happens to you in between here and the truck is not our fault."
"To clarify, it is our fault, but we're required to at least warn you ahead of time." Marshal chimed in, seeming to become a little nervous. "You don't have to worry about your things because I'll stay with you guys, but on the off chance that we get separated, Filip's first order is to find you again, mine is to get to the truck and update the driver and VE, then I get orders from there."
"Don't worry about getting separated, though, it hasn't happened in a long time."
Ethan took the strap of his dufflebag off his shoulder, then passed the bag off to Marshal. "I take it one of you is going to lead the way?"
Marshal pointed to Filip while adjusting the dufflebag. "He will. The formation we took while walking is the same one we'll take while running."
Filip looked over Ethan and Marshal, waiting until they both seemed ready. "Alright, let's go."
The three began running, Filip eventually leading the other two off the street they were previously on, over a fence, and into a construction site that was hardly lit. The change in scenery made Ethan slow down to check his surroundings until he realized he had put a distance between Filip and him and Marshal. The realization made Ethan look back to confirm that Marshal was still behind him but that he was the only one behind him.
Filip glanced back noticing the distance between him and the other two but that didn't slow him down. "Come one! We're almost there, I swear!"
Ethan and Marshal were only able to catch back up when Filip abruptly stopped a few minutes later. Ethan didn't notice the truck beforehand, mainly because it blended in with the darkness.
Marshal handed the dufflebag to Filip then got in the passenger's seat. Filip opened the backdoor and climbed in, scooting to the other side to allow Ethan to get in as well. Ethan shut the door behind him and looked around. The driver was an older man who didn't seem too pleased to be here. "Welcome." His voice lacked any enthusiasm, leading Ethan to the confirmation that he didn't want to be here. "The name's Cyrus."
"Ethan Rikard. I assume you're with these two." Ethan duly noted how Filip had quieted down after reaching the truck, but he assumed it was the running that likely tired him out. Cyrus started driving after introductions were finished.
"No, I'm not with any of you, I'm actually an undercover government agent and I've been trying to capture the Voyagers for years."
The problem with the way Cyrus spoke was that Ethan actually couldn't tell if he was joking or not. "You're not serious, are you?"
"He's not. Cyrus has been with the Voyagers longer than any current member has. He was also the first person born into the group, little tidbit of information." Filip finally spoke again, his voice seeming much more drained than before.
"Filip likes to guilt trip Cyrus whenever he can. I'd recommend ignoring it because it's only going to set you up for a bad impression." Marshal commented from the seat in front of Ethan.
Neither Filip or Cyrus responded, the silence telling Ethan that it was a topic he shouldn't touch. "So, Marshal, your version of normal was mentioned. What is normal to you?"
Cyrus snickered. "Yes, please let Ethan know what normal is to you."
"Normal is average." Marshal seemed to get nervous once again. "That's my definition of normal."
"Filip did only ask for the definition, so i can't argue with that." Cyrus continued on.
There was one thing that bit at Ethan, despite the whole situation itself. "Marshal mentioned that he would update Cyrus and VE if he got separated. He obviously didn't, but where exactly is VE? How can he update them if they're not here?"
"Back at the base. You'll meet her when we get there, but to answer your question, she knows our location through a GPS on our watches, but Cyrus is directly connected with her through the truck. Marshal would have had to come to the truck and she would give him details about my location." Filip sounded unsure of his own explanation. "That's how things would go with us. I don't really know how Cyrus has been instructed to do things, mainly because it hasn't happened since we changed our procedure."
Cyrus cleared his throat. "In a normal situation, that would happen and I would take the truck to the nearest location while staying away from residential areas. If it had happened tonight, that would have changed everything. The lady we normally have watching the monitors isn't int he lab for the night, so Marshal would have to get the location on his own."
"It's possible, but difficult on the watch.. Yeah, it would have been a disaster and extremely dangerous if we got separated tonight, so I'm really thankful that it didn't happen." Marshal took a quick glance at his watch as he spoke, citing the time as 4:18 in the morning.
Ethan didn't remember falling asleep in the truck, but he was shaken awake by Filip. "We're here."
"What time is it?" Ethan knew his movement was slow as he got out of the truck and looked around.
Filip checked his watch, then returned his arm to his side. "7:52. Now, I want to quickly explain to you that things might become heated or they might seem completely average when we go in, I don't know how anybody in there is right now."
Marshal and Cyrus walked around the truck, meeting up with Ethan and Filip. "When you go inside, you follow Marshal and he'll take you to the person you want to meet up with first. She'll handle you from there, okay?"
Ethan nodded, Filip and Cyrus dismissing themselves from the conversation. "I'll let you prepare yourself." Marshal turned his attention to Ethan, noting his overall sleepy aura.
"I'm as ready as I'll ever be." Ethan grabbed his dufflebag from the truck before shutting the door and following Marshal around for a few moments. Marshal stopped a few times, looking around each time. "You know where we're going, right?"
Marshal started moving again, Ethan following. "Yeah, I just forget where the door is sometimes." After digging around for a minute, Marshal started pulling at what looked to be a vault door in the ground.
Ethan quickly went to helping pull it open. The door opened after some forceful tugs by the two men, exposing a ladder down. "You should probably go first."
"I agree, you can drop the dufflebag down before I go." Ethan tossed the bag down and Marshal started the descent, Ethan following him. "Do me a favor and shut the door. You're going to have to slam it shut."
Ethan did so, the two reaching the ground before Marshal could speak again. "An underground bunker. Smart."
The room they entered was a pretty dusty one, doubtful to be the main entrance. "Stick close, okay?"
Marshal waited until Ethan grabbed his bag before he started to walk away.
Ethan observed the rooms he passed through, noticing a lack of people around. Filip and Cyrus had disappeared, more than likely while Marshal and Ethan were looking for the door. After passing through three rooms, Ethan pieced together that the room they had arrived from was some sort of secret storage area. They left the room and went through a pantry that didn't look like it harbored any secret room and then they went through a kitchen.
They walked through the bunker, Marshal remaining radio silent until they reached a hallway of doors, Ethan quickly recognizing the layout similar to a dormitory. When Marshal did speak, his voice was in a whisper. "I know for certain that she's not a morning person and she's going to be absolutely livid that I woke her up, so I'd recommend you stay here for a moment."
Ethan nodded and stopped walking when Marshal did, the two parting ways as Marshal went into a nearby room.
He couldn't help but keep a watchful eye on the other doors as he waited for Marshal to return. Marshal eventually left the room again, telling Ethan to go in. Nothing happened while Marshal was gone, which Ethan was thankful for.
"You're not coming with me?" Ethan stopped before he went into the room. "At least tell me who's in here."
Marshal grinned, stopped his walk away. "VE's in there, but if you can't handle separating from me then I guess I'll go."
"Don't let your ego get in the way, I can handle introductions on my own."
Marshal continued on his way, Ethan prepared himself before stepping into the room. "You should probably shut the door behind you or else we're both in trouble." A woman stood in front of the doorway, a smile fixed on her face. She stepped back to let Ethan in and allow him to shut the door. "Pardon the mess, it's not my room."
Ethan looked over the room, noting that it was actually fairly clean. "That's quite alright. I've been told that you're VE, is that true?"
"Oh, where are my manners? I'm sorry, yes, I'm VE." She held out her hand. "My name is Elizabeth Neil."
'Neil? No, the writer's name was Leah Neil, there's no way they're the same person.' Ethan thought to himself, trying to ease his nerves.
He shook her hand, then the two put their hands back to their sides. "Ethan Rikard, but I'm sure you already knew that."
"That I did." The woman's smile didn't seem to fade, despite the awkward situation that they had both just been put in. "I wanted to apologize for risking your safety like that. You made a pretty smart choice by waiting it out, though. You also made a smart choice by joining us. I'm happy to help you get situated to life in the bunker and you don't have to worry too much about finding a job anymore."
"Why is that?"
"Because we prefer things to happen naturally here. We don't want to force you into work, we want you to go at your own pace and do what you like, even if you're not good at it. You'll eventually learn and we'll all pitch in to help you out when you need it."
"When will I be able to meet other members?"
"Whenever we finish. I'll take you to the common area, but then I'll have to handle something."
Ethan stopped, debating if he should bring up his last question or not. "Your last name is Neil, do you perhaps have any relation to a journalist by the name of Leah Neil?"
Elizabeth's smile faded, telling Ethan the answer before she did herself. "Yes, I suppose you read the article... She's my mother." After a quick sigh, Elizabeth's smile returned to her face, her eyes still retaining the sad look they gained the moment before. "Right, so if you don't have any questions, I can take you to the common area."
He could tell that she was just trying to get out of the conversation before it delved farther into her personal life. "I don't have anymore questions."
She nodded and walked around Ethan to the door. They left the room and started down the hallway. Marshal and Ethan had come from the left, but Elizabeth took Ethan to the right. 'That's why I didn't see anybody. The common area is farther than where we were going.'
Elizabeth stopped a few feet past the doorway, waiting for Ethan to enter the room as well. "This is Ethan Rikard, he's our latest member." Ethan looked over, seeing Marshal, Filip, and Cyrus, but another man and two women. "Lecia, before you snap on me, understand that I already know everything about him and it's all documented. Joseph, before you snap on me, I was going to talk about it with you."
The one man Ethan didn't know, presumably the Joseph that Elizabeth mentioned, seemed upset. Ethan looked over to Filip, noticing that he looked a little fearful. "When were you going to talk about this with me? You had all night to mention something, but you decided not to? Elizabeth, this is important and you need to include me in plans like this."
"But I did, you just didn't listen. I think it's best we talk about this alone instead of starting another scene and trying to kick me out again."
"Your own vote was for you to leave, why would a similar situation even bother you?" One of the other women spoke up. She had black hair and just looked angry.
Elizabeth chuckled. "That's a good one, Lecia, but please hold off on absolutely destroying me today, I don't think I can handle it."
Joseph rose from his seat with a sigh, pointing to the doorway. "Elizabeth, go, I'll be around in a minute."
Elizabeth turned and left the room, leaving Ethan standing next to the doorway. Joseph followed her out and the room went silent before the final woman spoke up. "Welcome, Ethan. I'm sorry you had to see that, but please don't get used to it, it's not normal around here. My name is Eris Duke, the man who just left in such a huff over nothing is my husband, Joseph."
Cyrus chuckled from across the room. "I hope you're not using Marshal's definition of normal."
Filip and Eris laughed, Marshal simply rolled his eyes and seemed to sink into his seat. The other woman didn't seem to find anything humorous. She got up and forced a smile onto her face. "Welcome again, Ethan. I'm Lecia Albero and I am also excusing myself from this conversation, I'll see you in a bit, Eris."
Lecia promptly left the room, leaving Eris looking confused. "That's not usual, but I guess someone has to start breakfast." Eris looked to Ethan. "Looks like both of our groupies left us, would you like to take a seat?" Ethan approached the seat next to her, only noticing her pale skin as he got closer. She held out her hand as he took a seat. "Pleasure to meet you."
He shook her hand and looked around the area. "It's nice here, how long have you guys been around?"
Eris gasped then covered her mouth. "You have questions that Elizabeth didn't answer? That's going to look bad on her performance review." Ethan could tell she was joking by the tone of her voice. She moved her hand away from her mouth and smiled. "We've been here for, oh, I wanna say around seven years. Things have changed since then, but we're actually pretty well off."
"There's a lot less people than I expected." Ethan commented, still looking around the room.
"Well, we aren't exactly popular people outside this bunker, some of us are even less popular inside the bunker." Eris seemed to chuckle at herself. "If you've got any questions about the people in the bunker then you can ask me. Elizabeth won't tell you because it's her job to protect what little privacy we have and some others don't really know each other well, but I know everyone here personally and fairly well."
"Is that so? What can you tell me about-"
This choice decided that Ethan would ask Eris about herself, Lecia, and Cyrus.
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 3:03:08 GMT
Missing- 1.6
Days in the bunker had always been gloomy for Milo and Elizabeth, just as the days before. The two were constantly bombarded with questions from others and themselves about their parents, questions they couldn't answer.
It had been seventeen years since anyone had seen their mother, almost twenty for their father. Milo didn't have to be a genius to see that Elizabeth always seemed hurt by the absences. The pair were taken care of by Joseph and Eris since their mother left until they each turned twenty, by which they were taking care of themselves.
What Milo wanted more than anything was to find out what exactly happened to their parents, but he could never bring himself to leave his little sister alone. He feared for her safety more than his own. No matter how many times she claimed to be safe, happy, and healthy, Milo saw right through it.
Ever since their mother left, Elizabeth suddenly stopped being interested in learning, she stopped her daily activities and shut down the day after their mother left. She stopped being herself.
As they each grew older, Milo thought over the changes he had been seeing and the changes that he had already seen, each of them more painful than the last. What Milo wanted for her was different from what Joseph and Eris wanted from her. He wanted her to be happy again, they wanted her to succeed.
The two were always closer when they were younger, but as far as Milo could remember, a wedge had been driven between them once Joseph had started pressuring Elizabeth to program and Milo to scout, both of them originally refusing.
There had always been times that each sibling struggled with right or wrong, only knowing that they had each other.
The two only agreed to scouting and programming after the bunker was discovered and the security was pretty lackluster.
After taking on their separate jobs, the communication stopped, but Milo's constant worrying didn't.
The first of March wasn't anything but a normal day up until Milo turned twenty-six. That was the day he knew it was okay to leave.
He told Elizabeth his plans, knowing she would be upset, but explained it was for their well-being. She disagreed and protested as much as she could until she realized it was hopeless and gave up.
When Milo decided to leave, Joseph said that the group would send him off despite Milo, Elizabeth, and the scouts disagreeing with the plan. Lecia agreed with it, but she didn't want Morgan leaving the bunker, knowing she would try to stay out of it. No matter what anybody said, Joseph wouldn't change his mind.
They escorted Milo to a midway point and said their goodbyes. It was clear that it troubled Elizabeth and Eris to be there so Cyrus volunteered to take them back and let the others finish seeing Milo off.
Everyone who remained was admittedly distracted until Lecia started to almost hyperventilate after being sent straight into a panic. Morgan had disappeared in between the group being split up.
Milo, Filip, and Marshal agreed to look as long as they could, advising Joseph to take Lecia back and check with Cyrus.
Joseph and Lecia went back to the bunker in high hopes, expecting Morgan to have just gotten confused and to have gone with Cyrus, but they returned to find Cyrus, Eris, and Elizabeth.
Joseph explained what had happened to the three there, causing Cyrus and Elizabeth to leave and join the search while Eris and Joseph focused on trying to calm Lecia down and keep her in the same place.
Anyone who left to search came back to the bunker at a different time, none of them coming back after a single day. Filip came back after three after a distress signal came from one of the other scouts. Elizabeth instructed him on how to access the lab and suggested that he watch the monitors for a little bit.
The distress call was from Milo, but the coordinates that Filip received were all wrong. Cyrus was the first to check the coordinates, finding no trace of Milo or Morgan.
After checking the coordinates, Cyrus went back to looking for Morgan, eventually finding himself in the city. There were too many people in the city to sort through and determine who was who. Cyrus spent four days in the city, returning to the bunker after a collective week.
Filip had been in constant contact with Elizabeth and Marshal after Cyrus returned. At the end of the week Filip had told them to return to the bunker, saying that there wasn't much hope to start with. Marshal agreed, but Elizabeth was hesitant to agree.
Marshal returned, but Elizabeth stayed out looking for Milo and Morgan.
Days passed and there was no sign that either of them had even been in the area to begin with. The coordinates on Milo's watch hadn't changed, but they all knew he wasn't there. Elizabeth finally gave in after her second week outside the bunker.
Eventually Milo's coordinates stopped showing up on the monitors, his vitals gone as well. It led the group to fear the worst for Milo, but retain some sort of wishful thinking for Morgan.
For the next two years to come, Milo's name seemed to be considered a forbidden word, but Morgan was always on Lecia's mind and normally the target of Elizabeth's searches.
Each individual in the group knew that hope was all they had. They had limited power and just about no resources, knew nobody in the city, and knew less about the true capability of the Onyx Organization. They only had hope, just like the members before them.
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 3:05:16 GMT
1.7
"I've got more than one question, if that's okay with you."
Eris looked around the room before shrugging. "Sure. I don't think my husband or my friend are coming back for a while." She reverted her vision to Ethan. "So, who can I dish about?"
Ethan looked around the room, still only seeing Filip, Marshal, and Cyrus. He figured he could ask Filip and Marshal about themselves, but Cyrus was a different story. Ethan lowered his voice to a whisper. "What story does Cyrus have to tell?"
She smiled slightly. "You don't have to be quiet about it, it's only a matter of time before you learn about the people here and he is a difficult person to get to know, so I don't blame you for asking." Her smile faded as she cupped her hands together. "My best guess is that you found out about our group through Leah's post and asked Elizabeth about her, am I right?"
"Yeah... How did you know?"
Eris was quick to pick up on an underlying sense of fear within Ethan. "That's usually how it goes. Plus, Elizabeth would have told you everything about Cyrus already had you not brought up Leah." She shrugged. "Oh well. Cyrus has been with the Voyagers the longest of any of us at fifty-seven years, having been through two leaders before Joseph and being the security director himself at a time. He had been offered the position of leader multiple times before Joseph was voted in; part of me wishes he had taken it. He might seem really intimidating, but he's really not a bad man. He has the interest of everyone else in the group on mind just about all the time, making him somewhat disconnected from everyday life. When the scouts aren't out, he can usually be found here in the common room." She motioned towards Marshal and Filip. "Those two normally aren't around and when they aren't, Cyrus reads a lot. If you ever need a recommendation then I would suggest going to him."
"Is that your recommendation?"
"I guess you could say that." Eris nodded, then paused for a moment. "So, anyways, Cyrus is fifty-seven, going on fifty-eight in two months. He was born into the group, the first child actually born into the group, which I find to be pretty interesting. He's got a strong passion for some pretty unique things, just like the rest of us. I'll leave it up to you to find out his passions and get a reaction, mainly because it's quite worth it. As far as we know, he has no family around anymore but that doesn't change how he cares for the group. He's pretty good friends with Filip and Marshal, which doesn't come as a surprise. I never really talk with him much since we run pretty much opposite schedules, but Joseph keeps in frequent contact with him. Lecia only likes him when he's mean to Elizabeth, which is a good fifty percent of the time. He and Elizabeth have some sort of weird relationship, I don't really know how to explain it, you'd have to ask one of them."
Ethan didn't get a chance to respond before he heard one of the men across the room laugh. He looked over to see Filip covering his mouth. Cyrus himself spoke up, seeming more cheerful than he was in the truck. "Before you get the wrong idea, I should clarify that when Eris says relationship she means friendship."
"You admit that you and her are friends?" Marshal spoke up, looking slightly amused.
"Marshal, you understand that I am occasionally your friend, right? I am also occasionally Elizabeth's friend, just less often than I am your friend because I don't talk to her as much as I talk to you."
Filip began cracking up even more. "Occasional friendships... I didn't know that was a thing before now." Ethan couldn't help but find these people a little strange.
Cyrus seemed to pull on a serious demeanor, sitting up straight in his chair, making Filip stop laughing. "Eris is right about the fact that I don't have family, I'll be completely honest with you about that. Nobody here has family, except for technically Eris and Joseph. Otherwise, the rest of us are on our own."
Ethan thought back to Leah's post, remembering a mention of a son, Elizabeth's brother. He stopped himself from asking, thinking better of it. "Then we should get along just fine."
"Was that all you wanted to ask about?" Eris withdrew herself from the conversation before speaking a word to the scouts.
"No, not really. I wanted to know about the woman who was with you earlier. Lecia, was it?"
Eris nodded. "Correct." She sighed. "Lecia's going to kill me if she finds out I tell anyone about her, so please, no matter what you hear, do not approach her with this information." Ethan agreed, allowing Eris to continue. "Lecia's story is a pretty sad one, if I'm honest. She's my closest friend in this bunker, probably in the world at this point. Lecia joined the Voyagers around ten years ago with her husband. They ended up having a baby girl before we moved to the bunker. She was always so happy to help out with whatever was needed and I found that so cool. She's a pretty average woman, if I say so. She used to be a housewife so she has no problems doing chores around here."
Ethan noticed that the scouts had moved closer to himself and Eris. He took a moment to study their expressions, noting that they all seemed sad to some degree. "She used to never have an issue with chores but now she'll procrastinate a bit before becoming upset and doing whatever needs to be done." Filip spoke up after he saw Eris begin to choke up a little bit.
"Lecia's husband was named Jonas and their little girl was Morgan." Marshal's words sent chills down Ethan's spine. "Jonas was involved in an accident a few years back, when we first moved back to the bunker. He didn't make it and Lecia shut down for a while after that. She was depressed and aggressive most days. Morgan was a little too young to understand what happened at the time, so it was made a group effort to keep it from her."
Cyrus studied Ethan for a moment before taking his piece. "The accident Jonas was involved in was an assault on the scouts. It was an oversight on my part, as well as Elizabeth's part."
Filip nodded before continuing on. "Morgan was really inquisitive for her age. She started making attempts at leaving when she was told that her father had previously been a scout." He let out a soft chuckle. "There was a joke between the scouts that she wanted to do her dad's job and stay away from the chores. She was really sweet, too, probably the nicest kid we've run into as a group."
"Two years ago Elizabeth's brother, Milo, decided to look into what happened with people we had lost recently and long ago combined. We were all escorting Milo out when some of the group turned back and went back to the bunker." Marshal didn't seem to be looking anywhere in particular, but he had a look of guilt painted on his face. "Nobody really kept track of who went back to the bunker. We only knew that Cyrus took them back." Ethan looked to Eris to see her struggling to hold back tears, looking a bit guilty herself. "Lecia was in a panic. I remember that Milo was the first one to drop everything and take off searching for Morgan."
"Filip had been approved access to the lab and he stayed there for weeks, trying to find out what happened to Morgan according to the footage, but nothing showed up. He ended up directing the scouts the weeks after he got access to the lab." Cyrus seemed void of emtoion as he spoke. "We ended up scattered and lost contact with Milo. I was in the city, Filip was in the lab, Marshal had gone at least thirty miles out west in the time he was gone, and Elizabeth went further east in her time. Nobody heard anything from Milo after a few days, nobody saw anything of Morgan either."
"A distress call took Cyrus to a nearby creek where nothing was found." Filip closed his eyes for a moment. "The rest... I don't remember."
Eris looked over Filip before taking control again. "After that, Lecia pretty much shut completely down. She blamed Elizabeth and Elizabeth waas trying to fix things with her. Joseph was the only one there, but he said one night Lecia just snapped on Elizabeth. We weren't really told the details of it, since Lecia didn't want to talk about it and Elizabeth just shut us all out after it happened. Marshal mentioned a scar Elizabeth had gotten from it but Joseph got onto him for sharing details, saying it didn't need to be brought up anymore."
"They never really recovered from that and Lecia never bounced back from those emotions. She still wants to know what happened to Morgan. We all do, but there's no way we could know." Marshal finished the topic.
Eris looked at her watch, looking ready to leave. "Is that all?"
"One last question, promise. What kind of person are you, Eris?"
The general aura of the room seemed to lighten up when Ethan asked the question. "I'd say the best kind of person." Filip spoke up. "If I'm right, we all owe Eris something big."
Eris chuckled. "You're right, Filip, you all owe me." Her voice seemed to carry a hint of sarcasm in it. "Well, my name is Eris Duke, I'm married to Joseph, you already knew this. I'm forty-two years old, no kids, like two permanent friends and four occasional friends, as Cyrus would call them. I joined the Voyagers after the government tried to take me out because of my illness, never got through that illness, and now I'm pretty much doomed to a short life because of it."
"And you somehow joke about it." Cyrus crossed his arms. "She and Joseph practically raised Milo and Elizabeth after Leah left."
"She's probably the most laid-back person around and pretty cool to hang out with. You would think that a bunker with seven people living in it wouldn't have much drama, right? You'd be totally wrong and Eris is the person to go to hear about it all." Filip chimed in once more.
Ethan noticed Marshal's silence since the topic change, but the guilty look remained fixed on his face.
"Eris is more than a gossip, though. She also does a fair amount of the chores around the bunker with Lecia." Filip seemed to enjoy speaking good of other people.
Eris shrugged. "Yeah, that's really all I do. Chores and informative speaking. That is my job around here."
Ethan looked towards the archway that connected the common room to the other rooms, noticing Joseph standing there. "Ethan, I'm sorry for any trouble Elizabeth caused you. I know you were put under a lot of pressure with this decision and it wasn't an easy one to make. I'd like to formally welcome you to the Voyagers, but also leave you the option of going home whenever you feel. Oh, and Lecia wanted me to inform you all that breakfast is ready."
He watched Joseph walk away, the three scouts and Eris standing up almost all at once. "Welcome again, Ethan." Eris smiled before leading the scouts out of the common area.
Ethan noticed Marshal took a separate way from the rest of the group. He stood and took a look around the room, only noticing one thing out of place in the dusty room.
There was a bowl of fake grapes that sat on a nightstand, the bowl positioned nowhere near the center of the nightstand.
Approaching the nightstand, Ethan pushed the bowl, noticing a drawer that hadn't been pushed all the way in. When he attempted to push it in, he realized it was jammed and the bowl was placed there to keep it from being seen.
Ethan couldn't help himself. He opened to drawer, the contents including a box of small trinkets, some pencils, and a journal. The journal looked like it had been used before, likely with an explanation behind the seemingly meaningless trinkets written inside.
A sudden thought crossed Ethan's mind. The items had been left there for a reason and the owner was unknown. He quickly counteracted the thought, telling himself that taking a look inside wouldn't hurt and it would provide a clue as to who the owner of the items was.
A choice here determined Ethan would look through the journal.
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 3:10:16 GMT
1.8
Ethan glanced around the room one last time, gripping the journal tight, nobody was around. He knew a majority of the group had gone to breakfast, but he didn't know where Marshal had gone.
Taking a seat in the closest chair that was out of the view of the doorway, Ethan flipped open the journal. What immediately greeted him was a list of names, a majority of them being familiar to him. 'Cherise, Gerald, Leah, Nolan, Filip, Jonas, Milo, Morgan.' Each name sat on a different line.
He turned the page and found pictures. Nobody in the pictures looked familiar until he reached the next page. There he saw a picture of the same Filip he had met the night before. Next to that was a picture with Lecia, a man, and a little girl. Ethan presumed the two to be her husband and daughter. He noted her husband stood taller than she did, probably by around a foot. He had brown hair, just like the daughter, but brown eyes while the daughter had green. The last picture had the most recognizable people in it. There was a man with blond hair and green eyes who stood between two people, both of them shorter than him. To his left was a girl with brown hair and green eyes and to his right was a man with black hair and brown eyes. Elizabeth and Marshal. Ethan could rightfully assume the man in the middle was Milo.
Turning the page again, Ethan found writing. 'Truth isn't just given, it's earned. Not by people like me, though, that's what Lecia says. But she has all right to believe that. The secrets I've kept from this group have been too many to count.'
'What I do is difficult to explain, even for me, I wish she would understand that so i don't have to spend every waking moment of my life wondering what accusation she'll throw at me next.'
'Ha, now that I think about it, I'm pretty lucky. Well, I can't defend that statement, so I take it back.'
The contents seemed to be scattered, like it was someone's thinking process. Ethan speculated for a moment that the owner of the journal could be Elizabeth, citing the lighthearted comments with underlying sadness, just as she had done when they first met.
He turned the page again and found a more organized paragraph. 'It's weird telling every secret I know to only two people. I want to tell the group, but they'd kill Filip if they knew the truth. I wish I was joking...'
'Sigh, the chip isn't linking back to the organization. my best guess now is that they unregistered 'Paul' when he couldn't be found. Well, I guess I can work with what I have now.'
'It's been a few hours since the chip was disconnected and Filip seems sick. He's definitely showing symptoms of withdrawal, but I'm not going to risk separating the chip until he gets better. Cyrus and Marshal don't agree with that idea, but it's the best I can do for Filip right now.'
'Wonderful, more assignments! They'll have to wait, I'm busy (like always.)'
On the back of that page was a layout of the bunker. The layout plan seemed much more detailed than the first time Ethan walked through. Everything was labeled clearly.
'This really isn't going to change, is it? Joseph wants me to send whatever records we have to the collector at the main base. There's a reason I didn't do it last time I was asked and that's because I can keep records myself, we don't need a third party going through our records.'
'Okay, so maybe I'm a little unfair in not trusting the collector in main, but that's just because I haven't been given a reason to trust him. he was a total jerk last time we met.'
'Not sending the records, saving time, the ultimate work plan!'
"I believe there's a note on the fourth or fifth page that says trust is not a given, something like that." A woman's voice greeted Ethan, causing a jolt of panic inside him, making him jump. "You're really pushing the trust you haven't earned yet."
The speaker put her hand out, expecting Ethan to give her the journal. He quickly closed it and gave it to her, rising from his seat he saw that the woman was Elizabeth, just as he had speculated. "I apologize."
She shrugged, turning away from Ethan. "Forget what you read and it'll be fine."
"Wait, I have a question, what chip are you talking about?" The fear that was in Ethan had been replaced by nervousness.
Elizabeth stopped and moved away from the doorway. "You are not going to talk to anybody about what you read. If word gets out then you can expect Filip to be executed and Marshal, Cyrus, and myself to be handed over to the Onyx Organization."
"Then tell me about the chip. If you tell me right now then I don't have to go to anyone else about it."
She froze, a look of defeat on her face. "Fine. The chip is one that the Onyx Organization uses to control their employees. Filip was in the wrong place at the wrong time and we were forced to take him captive. He was under my care for two weeks while I used to chip to get into the Onyx Organization's database." There was a pause, the look of defeat being replaced with one of nervousness. "When the chip disconnected, it sent some type of drug into his system that wiped his memories, so as far as he knew, he was a Voyager."
"In the writings, you said that if they found out that they would kill him. Who is they?"
"Joseph, Eris, Lecia. They weren't involved in this from the start. After the chip disconnected, we set up a ploy to make it look like Filip was just an average person, like you." She sighed. "Cyrus, Marshal, and I tried to change what he previously knew and it worked, for the most part. He doesn't remember anything about the Onyx Organization, but that's not such a bad thing. I can't tell you anything else, so please don't ask."
"Why did you leave the journal in such a lousy place?"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes and started to walk off again."The lab gets searched every so often, I can't risk it being found, but we see how that worked out."
"And where are you going now?" Ethan followed her out.
"To work. I have to change things with the program that's running the bunker to make sure that you're acknowledged as a Voyager and not an intruder."
Ethan could tell where the dining room was by the smell in the air, the opposite way of where she was going. "Are you not going to eat?"
"No, I have no reason to. I have work to do and I'm already behind since I wasn't allowed in the lab yesterday."
A choice here decided that Ethan would leave Elizabeth alone and go to breakfast on his own.
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 3:13:56 GMT
1.9
It was April 2nd before Luke had finally gotten permission to scope out some places that had been reportedly been involved in suspicious activity. He had to wait for an agent to return from their own involvements, which was typically a gamble.
Despite being the head of Underworld activities, he still had to take orders from the higher-ups, one of those orders was to not go alone.
The first available agent was one who knew Luke fairly well, compared to other workers and agents alike. That was because they had been partners before Luke moved high enough in the ranks to work alone. However, her attendance made Luke feel like he was working alone, so it didn't bother him.
"Agent Jacobson." She was a woman of average height with brown hair and green eyes, her build being generally slim.
"Mr. Lowell, it's been a long time." The two met up in the fourth floor of the headquarters, which was considered Luke's base of operation. They shook hands and headed for the elevator. "What are we dealing with?"
"Inspection, suspicious activity, the usual." The two stepped on the elevator, Luke pushing the first floor button. "Where exactly have you been?"
Sara had her hands cupped in front of her, her stance overall being pretty formal. "Just about everywhere. I figured I would be lucky enough to at least pinpoint the three who are constantly reported, but now I'd be grateful for just a footprint or something."
Sara Jacobson's role was an on-the-field agent. One who was constantly based out of the city, trying to find traces of resistance groups. "Understandable. Have you ever thought maybe they already know you're there and so they're intentionally avoiding your area?"
"I always knew they were bad people, but they don't even have the decency to greet a neighbor? Despicable, just the worst."
The elevator stopped at the first floor and the doors opened, allowing the two passengers off. "Maybe it's your clothing choice. At this point, I'm sure everyone knows that only government officials wear suits all the time."
"Um, I'd like to argue that, have you seen my Saturday sweater vest? It's nothing but welcoming."
"Do you have the sweater vest with you to defend that argument?"
"No." Sara almost seemed shamed by her own answer.
"Then you should take it back." Overall, Sara and Luke had known each other for around two years, but interacted far less than that time. "I could have sworn I've told you many time to not use an argument that you can't defend. Also, to not wear sweater vests because they make your shoulders look broad."
The two exited the building, heading towards the parking lot. Luke pulled a pair of keys from his pocket. "Suits do that too, thank you very much."
"Maybe you just have broad shoulders."
Sara knew Luke's type of humor, which he didn't really show that much. It was a strange one, full of witty comments and the occasional dark joke that would throw off anyone who hadn't known him long. That was if they would actually talk to him. "You've finally found out my darkest secret, that I have broad shoulders, and for that you're on my list."
"Your list of people that you're going to attempt to think of a comeback for? I figured I was already on that one." They stopped at a car, Luke unlocked the doors and got in the driver's seat, Sara getting in the passenger's seat.
"Ow, alright. This conversation is over until you drop that attitude."
"It was over anyways, you can't come back from that one."
The two sat in silence for a majority of the drive, mainly because it was a short drive to the reported area.
They pulled up to a house, the both of them going to the front door. Luke knocked, waited, knocked, then waited some more. He eventually had to take the screen off of one of the windows and climb in.
It didn't take long for them to realize that the owner had definitely abandoned the house. It seemed cleaned, but disorganized at the same time, like someone had been trying to get out in a hurry. "The owner was an unemployed male, aged twenty-seven, named Ethan Rikard. He was one of those who searched the alleged keywords from the email."
"You should probably do a deeper scan on the area, see what you come up with." Sara stood near the open window, her formal posture remaining.
After Sara finished talking, the house seemed to go dead silent. Luke had cut off the sounds of other electronics, preparing to do a more thorough search. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then reopened them. The immediate reading suggested that Ethan abandoned the house himself, but a few moments later the search picked up evidence of two extra people in the house.
"What's the reading?" Sara knew it was a risk to talk after Luke had started searching.
He turned to face Sara, his eyes gleaming a dark red. "Three males, one being Rikard. Rikard was all over the place, but two were just in the area near the door. There's a scuff on the wall paneling, which makes me believe that something ran against the wall."
She nodded. "Can you figure out what happened with the wall? Maybe pick up a fingerprint or something from the door?"
"The issue with that, Sara, is that people don't casually clean their door handles. Besides, it's unlikely the Voyagers are careless enough to send people who are entered in the organization database out or people who are interested in touching every object in their view."
"They have to recruit new people somehow and I doubt they're doing it by having children run about and get people."
"Fair point, but I'm not going to waste my time with the door handle. I'm more interested in the wall paneling right now." Luke entered the hallway and crouched in front of the scuff, allowing himself a better reading of what had caused it. "It's likely that there was a confrontation in this area and someone got pushed into the wall."
Sara joined Luke in the hallway, looking at the paneling herself. "Do you think it was a kidnapping?"
Luke stood up and walked down the hallway to a bedroom. "It might be set up to look that way, but no, I doubt it. Like I said, the only traces of the two extra men are in the hallway. Rikard's belongings are pretty scattered, so I think he might have left in his own free will."
"Right."
"There's nothing much we can do here except for confirm that Ethan Rikard is gone and then move on. We're going to be moving a little fast to try and catch up to them, so keep up."
"How sure can we be of it? We can definitely do things here. We should gather some clues since we know he's gone."
"If you want to look around, fine. Ten minutes starting now, go."
Anthony Richardson
Anthony has been summoned to the Onyx Organization headquarters to meet Isaac Hampton and talk about matters regarding his marriage to Naomi Dumont. He didn't really see the point of Isaac being involved in the discussion of it, but both his and Naomi's parents insisted on it, saying Isaac would deliver the two proper advice.
Isaac had told Anthony to meet him in the main lobby at 10:05 exact, no earlier and no later.
When he arrived, Isaac told him that Naomi was waiting in a conference room and that they would go to her and discuss the plans.
Arriving in the conference room, they both took a seat. Anthony sat next to Naomi and Isaac sat across from them, none of them really looking too excited to be there. "I can understand the frustration of someone who isn't even a member of your family to be planning your wedding, but I need you two to listen to me and listen well."
"Sir, with all due respect, we already have the preparations handled with extreme precision, we don't require assistance." Naomi spoke up, her voice remaining small, compared to Isaac.
Isaac shook his head. "I wish that was how it works, but you can go ahead and cancel the plans you've already made. The two of you will be receiving and honorary wedding, courtesy of the Onyx Organization, hosted tomorrow at noon."
"Excuse me, what?" Anthony could have sworn he felt his own heart sink, Naomi apparently wanted to be more vocal about her opinion on the matter. "No, sir, regardless of the Richardson's family acceptance, I cannot accept this."
"Ms. Dumont, your family accepted the plans as well. You do want to make your family happy, right?" Isaac waited for a response that didn't come. "With the stir-up that the Voyagers caused, we need a distraction for the people or things will get bad."
Naomi looked over to Anthony with pleading eyes. "Are you really going to let this happen? Other things can be done to pose a distraction, right?"
"Not immediately." Anthony sighed. "It would be a bigger move to host a wedding than anything else. It's a smart move and if they're bold enough to propose hosting it tomorrow then I can only assume that they've figured everything out and have prepared for any moves related to the Voyagers, is that a reasonable assumption, Mr. Hampton?"
Isaac rested his arms on the table in front of him, a move that neither Anthony or Naomi dare to try. "That is the case. Judging by their recent noted activity, it's unlikely they'd take a chance at the wedding, but even if they do, it's covered."
Naomi sighed, a look of defeat crossing her as she turned back to Isaac. "If both families are in agreement and it helps the Organization, then tomorrow it is."
A sly grin crossed Isaac's face as he and Anthony each stood and shook hands across the table. "You won't regret this, Ms. Dumont, I give you my word. The venue will be under constant surveillance throughout the day and you will each be escorted by ten Onyx organization security guards."
"Then let it be set for tomorrow." Naomi seemed frustrated with her words. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some personal preparations to make and further plans to cancel. Have a nice day, Mr. Hampton."
Luke Lowell
After leaving Ethan Rikard's home, Luke and Sara went to other locations where suspicious activity had been reported. A majority of the locations were just nearby people getting stirred up over nothing, but others had few clues to offer about the ongoing situation.
They called the search over at five in the afternoon, knowing they both needed to be back at the headquarters before six.
"How long are you going to be around this time?" They ended up farther away from the headquarters than they initially intended to, though what bothered Luke the most was the effort they had put in and the little results they got.
"Well, we're required to stay for at least three days after an outing in order to fully recover. I really wish I didn't have to stay at all, but I guess three days."
"Why do you say that?"
"What? That I would rather not stay?" Sara rested her head on the window, her voice sounded as drained as she looked. "It's simple, really, I have nothing to stay for. I'd be a fool to show up at the family house. Better to be on the right path than to be foolish and stray."
Luke scoffed. "At least you have the option to show up to a family home. Not all of us are given that option, so you should at least be grateful for that."
Sara didn't respond to the comment and didn't speak the rest of the ride, leading Luke to believe that she had fallen asleep.
Arriving at headquarters, Luke went to wake Sara up, only for her to leave the car before he could.
They went inside and to the elevator, heading to the fourth floor. They were greeted by silence, noticing that nobody was around.
Luke left the elevator first, Sara cautiously following him. "Weird, I half expected some of the nuts to be wandering."
"Someone must actually be doing their job tonight, which probably means that someone more important is around. Keep an eye out." After returning from a search, it was protocol to file reports on what was found and what was noted, but not found. That was their current task, but Luke couldn't help but scan while he walked. There was one conclusion from Luke's search and it was that there was indeed extra people on the floor. He stopped as they rounded a corner, turning his attention to the newest worker of the fourth floor. "Kowalska, what's going on here?"
The pale red-head left her station to approach Luke and Sara. "Hampton's here. He's taking extreme measures, so I'd stay away from him if you have the choice to." She looked to Sara, her green eyes meeting Sara's. "You're married, right?'
Sara seemed suspicious of the question, but overall concerned. "No, I'm not... what exactly is Isaac proposing?"
Alyssa crossed her arms and redirected her vision to Luke. "Yeah, stay away from him. He's setting up some sort of mass marriage ceremony to distract the people. I don't know if he knows her, but if he knows that she's unmarried then it's quite possible that he'll remove her from field duty just to add another marriage to the list."
"Another? How many does he already have set up?" Sara's suspicion was quickly replaced with shock. "What did you tell him?"
"I think like three, but he's telling these people that the organization is covering the cost of everything." Alyssa shrugged. "I haven't spoken to him myself and I don't wish to. I've just been hearing things from people going through and trying my best to keep them contained."
Luke shook his head. "Thank you, Alyssa, that'll be all." Alyssa went back to her station and Luke started to continue on his way until he realized Sara stopped following him. "Are you coming or not?"
"I'll be around in a few minutes, I have something more important to do first."
Ethan Rikard
The bunker was unusually quiet. Nobody had seen Elizabeth for a day or two and Marshal's appearances seemed to be getting shorter each time he was seen. Filip and Cyrus didn't seem to be around as much, but looked miserably exhausted each time Ethan saw them.
What struck Ethan as odd was that nobody else seemed phased by it.
The only person who was bothered was Cyrus himself when Marshal was in a hurry to leave the afternoon before.
Cyrus kept telling Marshal to stay and that it was dangerous out there, but Marshal insisted on leaving. Filip agreed with Marshal and explained the Ethan later on what had happened.
Filip told Ethan that Elizabeth had gone to the city the day before Marshal left but she was in some sort of trouble now and she had requested that Marshal go alone. Cyrus didn't like the idea of Marshal going alone, but nobody knew what kind of trouble Elizabeth had gotten into, so they all eventually assumed that it was for the better.
After Marshal left, Cyrus told Filip to go into the lab and watch the monitors since he was the only other person who had access to them, so that's what Filip did. Since then, the bunker seemed a lot less lively and more lonely than it had been when Ethan first showed up.
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 3:14:47 GMT
1.10
Sara had never been fond of the workers apartments, mainly because she never felt any particular attachment to the organization to begin with. Her job was to be sent away for months at a time so there was nothing there for her. There was no time to make friends or visit family.
There was only one person she could keep being associated with, but that was because they nearly always ended up nearby each other. Steven Suggs, a fellow agent. She would never admit it out loud, but Luke was one of those 'occasional friends' her father had warned her about.
Long after dark there had been a notice of another on-the-field agent returning home. She waited around twenty minutes after the notification before she decided to go to Steven's apartment.
She half expected for nobody to be there when she knocked, but to her surprise the agent opened the door and seemed happy to see her. "You're okay..." He paused. "You are okay, right?" She nodded, but he still retained a suspicious look. "No mere man is good enough for your blessing, is that true?"
Sara scoffed slightly, crossing her arms. "As if. Are you going to keep testing me or are you going to ask me why you're here?"
He moved out of the doorway, allowing Sara into the apartment and shutting the door behind her. "Yeah, I am pretty interested as to why I'm here. You said it was urgent and you were in danger, but you're obviously not. What's the case?"
"There's some plan that Hampton's building up for tomorrow and this entire act of mine could be in danger if he even learns of one of me." She saw a look of confusion cross his face, causing her to sigh in frustration. "Marshal, I've already been warned twice today to avoid everything going on tomorrow because I am twenty-six and unmarried, but because I've only been around one day instead of three, I have no choice."
"And what exactly do you need help with? I'm really not seeing a correlation for what you need help with and why from me specifically." Marshal didn't need an answer to see that whatever was on her mind was sending her into a complete panic. "Elizabeth, sit down and breathe. It's going to be fine. I'm going to be around for the next three days, so just tell me what you need from me."
She shrugged, standing in the same place. "I shouldn't. It'll look suspicious if I'm here too long and probably set my own suspicions about tomorrow in stone."
"Then at least explain what's happening tomorrow."
"Hampton is throwing some sort of giant wedding and he's setting up people. I know it sounds stupid, but I'm afraid of running into him tomorrow because if he finds out anything about 'Sara' through Luke or me accidentally, then I'll be stuck here until I'm eventually found out ."
Marshal shook his head, then left the door and took a seat. "That's your biggest flaw, Elizabeth. You're a lot of things and most of them are good things, but you get so easily paranoid about things that have a microscopic chance of happening. I don't know what made you that way, but you need to take some time to yourself to fix it." Elizabeth directed her vision towards the floor before taking a seat herself, refusing to look at Marshal. "I know what you're put through on a day to day basis is tough enough, but then you've got the long-term projects. It's truly never-ending for you, but you can't let your job or certain people bite at you."
"You said it yourself, it's never-ending. How am I supposed to take a break if it's never-ending?"
"Stop saying yes to everything, turn down things that aren't an absolute necessity. Start standing up for yourself. You don't need to take everything that people push onto you because they can't handle their personal failures." Marshal sighed. "Elizabeth, please, stop torturing yourself like this. It's painful to watch because you won't let anyone help you."
"Because nobody needs to be involved. They're my problems."
"No, they're not! A majority of problems that turn out to be yours have nothing to do with you! You take them on because you're so used to putting pressure on yourself because of other people's recklessness. What happened to Morgan had nothing to do with you, but you've taken blame for it for two years. For two years you've constantly nagged yourself to be better when you've pushed your limits day after day. It's not right and you need to stop." He hadn't realized how much was too much until he realized he made Elizabeth, a woman he had only seen cry on an extremely rare occasion, burst into tears. "I'm sorry, Elizabeth."
Elizabeth took a few minutes to compose herself again, calming herself down so she could at least speak. "Marshal, I called for your help because I knew you would show up. Why you're always on my side, I don't know and sometimes I wish you could see that I am in the wrong most of the time. I've always wondered about you, what your intentions are, but I can never figure them out. You and Milo were so close and he probably knew everything about you, but Milo was good at keeping secrets. I never found anything incriminating about you."
"I don't think you would have considering I'm clean for the most part." Marshal paused, a small smile coming across his face. "I admire the effort at changing the topic, but I don't want to talk about myself right now. I want to make sure that you're going to be okay."
"The gesture hasn't gone unnoticed, but you don't have to care. I know somewhere deep inside you, there's a burning hatred for me, just like everyone else. You're only putting on an act because of Milo, aren't you?"
"No, I'm not putting on an act. I need you to understand that Milo and I were pretty good friends, but it's not because of him that I'm here right now. I'm here because I actually see the good in you and I don't want to sit by and watch you beat yourself up anymore. We're lucky to have you around and I fully believe that the others take that for granted so often that you're not even sure how to accept the fact that somebody genuinely cares for you. You're used to being checked up on so that your work progress would continue, but you're not used to being checked up on because someone actually wants to know how you're doing. You're not used to affection in any way."
"You seem to be confident in your knowledge of it, so tell me, why do you think that is?"
It didn't take long for Marshal to pick up on Elizabeth's upcoming defensive tone, meaning he should likely wrap up the conversation before he upset her beyond repair. "I'm not going to lie to you. Milo mentioned plenty of times how you cut yourself away from everybody else after your mom left. You never let Eris get too close to you because you were ashamed of what your mother did when she left you and Milo. You didn't want to be a constant reminder, so you figured you'd be better off dead. That mentality never changed up until recently, did it? Elizabeth, I'm not stupid. I know most of what Final Product Four is programmed to do and what it's capable of and I know that ending your life with it wouldn't be too hard for you. I also know that this was your plan until Ethan showed up. Am I wrong?"
Elizabeth seemed to go pale as she sunk into her seat, finally making eye contact with Marshal. "No, you're not. You're right about most of it."
"Listen, I know you're tired and you don't want to talk about this anymore, but I don't feel safe with sending you off on your own. If you'd like to stay here, you can take the room and I'll sleep out here or if you'd prefer, I'll take you home myself. Whatever the choice, I don't want you to be alone right now."
She seemed to scan the apartment living room, before slowly rising from her chair. "I don't really want to be alone so I guess I'll stay."
Marshal found it strange how her agreeing to stay made him feel relieved. He didn't want to admit it, but Elizabeth's fears were likely justified and it would only take one slip up for them to discover who 'Sara' really was. "Alright then. You can do just about whatever you want, I don't really care, just please stay inside the apartment. If you want to leave or you want to talk then feel free to wake me up. If it'll make you feel better, I'll go to whatever Hampton's hosting tomorrow with you."
Elizabeth smiled, for once it seemed genuine and kind. "I'd enjoy that. Thank you for coming to help me, Marshal, it means a lot to me."
"Thank you for giving me the opportunity."
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Post by Kal on Dec 17, 2018 3:23:18 GMT
Chapter One Finale - 1.11
It's a shame. Most people in the city are hypocrites, trapped in their fictional reality. What they want to believe is that nothing is wrong with who they are or what they do. I'm sure there's someone here who hasn't been sober for years, but the Organization is hiding it. Maybe someone who's guilty of infidelity. They'd probably cover that up too. With past experiences, I want to know why I spent sleepless nights hiding from them. They don't know some 'street rat' like me is among them, they probably would never know either. Better yet, I want to know why I'm still spending sleepless nights worrying about them. Nobody knows a thing and even if they did, I'm not alone.
Elizabeth rolled over to face the alarm clock on the nightstand next to the bed. 1:53. She came to the apartment around ten and stopped talking to Marshal at eleven. "I can build barriers between people, break into government records, and hide among agents, but I can't sleep at night? The easiest thing in the world and I can't do it." Elizabeth whispered to herself, finishing with a sigh.
She wondered if Marshal was still awake or if he would wake up if she tried. 'Nothing stopping me from trying.' Elizabeth climbed out of the bed, trying to maneuver her way to the door through the dark. After finding the door, she left the room to find a majority of the apartment had gone dark. She followed the only noise she could hear, which was dripping water, until she found herself stumbling into a shut door in the dark.
After she shambled away from the door, trying to keep her balance, the door opened and Marshal stood on the other side. "Why are you awake?" He flipped a switch next to the doorway on Elizabeth's side, lighting up the living room. "Better question, why are you walking around in the dark?"
Elizabeth waited until she was certain she had no chance of slipping before she answered. "I couldn't sleep and so I came out to talk to you but I thought you were asleep since the lights were off. I was going to turn off the water because I didn't want it to wake you up."
"I'm impressed that you could hear the water from the room. Is that what was keeping you awake?"
"I couldn't hear it until I opened the door, so no, it wasn't." Elizabeth crossed her arms. "Since you seem to be grilling me for my lack of sleep, I've got a question for you. Why aren't you asleep?"
Marshal chuckled before shaking his head. "I'm not grilling you, Elizabeth, I'm just checking up on you. To answer your question, I'm going to share a little secret with you, but you're probably going to get mad at me for it." He waited until Elizabeth looked like she couldn't wait anymore. "I am not sleeping because... I also can't sleep."
"Very funny, get me worked up for nothing." Despite trying to look upset about it, Elizabeth couldn't bring herself to do so, eventually giving in and cracking a smile. "Well, since we're in the same boat, what are you doing?"
"I was reading a book, but now I'm having some concerns."
Elizabeth's smile quickly fading, being replaced with an equally concerned look. "And what are those concerns?"
"That you're a vampire and you don't even know it. Think about it, it makes a lot of sense. You're up in the dead hours of the night and you don't walk into places uninvited." He motioned towards the kitchen door. "Seriously, it's been wide open this whole time and you haven't even moved."
"Because I haven't been invited in. I might be a human leech, but I have manners and patience."
Marshal took a moment to study Elizabeth, seeing that despite what had happened a few hours earlier, she looked to finally be genuinely happy for once. "Then let me be the first and only to invite you into my humble kitchen."
She entered the room, taking a seat at the table to the right of the door, Marshal going to the actual kitchen area on the left. How could he stay happy after all he's seen?
Marshal lost everything before he joined the Voyagers. He watched it all happen and he still managed to smile every single day and attempt to make other people happy as well. It gave Elizabeth hope that the current situation of the Voyagers would somehow get better and there would be no need to live in fear anymore.
"Marshal, do you remember when you first joined the group?"
Even without looking at her, Elizabeth knew he was listening intently. She didn't know what he was doing, but she knew it needed at least half of his attention. "I remember a lot, you're going to have to specify what about it. For instance, I remember anytime Milo would get questioned for where he was going, he would ask if nowhere was a good answer and whenever an adult said no, you would say 'well, we're always going somewhere so I think that's a good answer.' and somehow it would work."
She hadn't even thought of the better times from when they were younger herself, but being reminded of them made her begin to understand why Marshal always seemed so hopeful. "I meant do you remember what happened to your family that got you stuck with us?"
"Of course I do. It was an unfortunate situation, but it helped change me to who I am now. I also remember never telling anyone the full story because I was too weak and afraid to talk about it." Elizabeth heard him sigh, noticing his overall attitude had changed with just one question. "For fifteen years I've kept it to myself and wondered if I could have changed anything or done something better to prevent it, but I've only recently come to the conclusion that it had nothing to do with me and I'm lucky just to be alive."
"You know, you never told me what happened. If it's okay with you, I'd like to know."
"I never told anybody, but I thought you were some sort of super genius who knew all of the happenings in the world, what happened to that Elizabeth?"
"That's not really me, it never was. I know what the Organization records tell of what happened, but I also know that the records can't be trusted."
Marshal stopped what he was doing, putting whatever it was in the cabinet before he went to the table and sat across from Elizabeth. She could tell by the look on his face that just remembering whatever happened was a pain for him. "When my parents met, my dad was a first level Onyx Organization employee, handling paperwork and stuff like that. They married and had me before my dad became a fourth level employee, you know what happens there. My mom was against everything he told her about work and told him over and over that he needed to step out of the fourth level works but he wouldn't do it. Every night from when I was younger, I remember my dad coming home late and my mom getting upset about it because he was never around to spend time with me or her and she threatened to leave him day after day because she was so fed up with it... I don't blame her, though, she spent twenty years putting up with it and never had anyone but herself for six of those years. My mom looked into the Voyagers after she had finally had enough and my dad was faced with the order to 'handle us appropriately'. I remember leaving the house with my mom while my dad was at work and instead of going to school, she took us out of the city. We met Cyrus at the end of the planned expansion zone that they were doing and I just remember this loud noise, then Cyrus grabbing me and running. I don't know what happened to my mom, I don't know if my dad it, and I don't think I want to after so long."
"Marshal..." Elizabeth knew Marshal to be unphasable, sometimes almost as annoyingly optimistic as Filip was, but this was the worst she had seen him. "You don't have to talk about it anymore."
Marshal put his shaking hands on the table, hoping the surface would stop them from shaking. "Cyrus might have saved my life at the cost of another. Sometimes I really wonder what would have happened if we hadn't left that day. What is we stayed home or I went to school? Would she be alive? Would I be dead?"
Elizabeth reached over the table and put her hands over his, knowing that words wouldn't get to him at this point. "You were only fourteen, Marshal, there was nothing you could have done. I know that's not what you wanted to hear, but keep listening. Your mom wanted to get you out of there. No matter what you think, I'm sure you were always her first priority and she made the choice she did for you. I know it sounds like I'm blaming you, but I'm not, I'm giving you a reason to not blame yourself and that's because she interacted with the Voyagers for you. You're doing justice for her just by being here so please, stop blaming yourself."
He sighed and cracked a smile, looking to Elizabeth. "I know and I accept all that's happened. You don't need to worry about me, but thank you." She moved her hands to rest directly in front of her. "I have a favor to ask of you."
"And what would that be?"
"No matter what happens tomorrow, you'll stay by my side the entire time. I don't want to think about what trouble you could get into if we get split up." He could tell by the look on her face that she was confused by the sudden request. "What I mean is that anybody would kill to have you, just based on your looks alone and I'm sure Isaac would pick on you because he knows that. I'm afraid once they find out all you really have to offer then we'll never have a chance at getting you back."
"Now you're starting to sound like some skeptic, get your head out of the gutters." Elizabeth got out of her chair, flashing a quick smile. "But I'll stick with you. If you stop saying we and admit that it's totally only you who doesn't want to lose me."
Marshal scoffed, getting out of his chair as well. "You think my head is in the gutters? You hear what you're saying, right?"
"My job is to have a clear head and I have never once become dazed."
"Alright, I'll believe you there, but only because you still have a job." Marshal could tell Elizabeth was ready to go to bed and he couldn't exactly say he didn't want to as well. "I've got one last thing to say to you, so I'll make it fast. I know your main concern was Hampton approaching you. That's why I don't want you to leave my side, however, if he does give you the option to say no to it, I'm leaving that choice up to you and I'll agree with whatever you say."
Lyla Richardson
Lyla was among the few people who worked late night hours at the Onyx Organization headquarters.
She only did it because she was tasked an impromptu job just before she would usually be getting ready to leave that night. The task was an odd one, but not something she hadn't done before.
Lyla had been told to take blood from a few people on the fourth floor and figure out as many sequences as she could and that was because ever since Leah Neil returned to the city and Milo Neil had been found, there'd been a theory that the daughter who hadn't returned was involved with the Voyagers.
The theory had many scientists on high alert because, like many children of influential people, the daughter's traits were assigned to her by Layla herself, long before Leah considered leaving the city. Lyla was familiar with the process, her own son having had his traits assigned to him before his birth as well.
However, Anthony's physical traits were also chosen specifically, whereas Leah didn't agree with doing that to her daughter, so Lyla didn't have the specifics of what she looked like.
Two tubes of recently drawn blood sat on the counter, both had been collected by lab assistants while Lyla put together what she knew about the daughter already, starting with the traits. Lyla remembered Leah's request for a child who wasn't afraid to stand up for herself and others, but knew when to keep quiet. She wanted any talents that she may have to develop naturally, so even if she was involved with the Voyagers, there was no idea as to what role she played.
Looking over Leah's records, Lyla found the request and the results of the daughter's first check-up on her traits at four weeks old. She marked down what she felt important on a separate sheet of paper. 'Elizabeth Valerie Neil, born October 16, 2182, current age twenty-six, blood type B+.'
Lyla pulled out an older file with the initials D.N. on them, scanning the first paper she saw, she went back to her separate sheet of paper. 'David blood type AB+, Leah ??, likely B.'
Lyla looked over her current notes, a quick realization occurring to her. "It's so simple that it's almost brilliant. VE, could stand for Valerie, Elizabeth or Voyagers Elizabeth." She paused, looking over the paper again. "But that has nothing to do with her traits, quite the opposite perhaps."
She scratched out the previous note, but the thought stayed in her mind as she worked with the blood she had been given.
Luke Lowell
Luke had organized a meeting with Sara and Steven, both of whom had offered to help with escorting some of the high-profile people to the venue before the event started. They met outside the worker's apartment building a few minutes before originally planned, but immediately got to work.
It seemed to go relatively easy, considering everyone knew that they were to be expected to be ready before Luke and the agents came to get them.
Arriving at the venue and letting the people they had picked up go, Luke and the agents stood around the entrance, unsure of what to do at the current moment.
Sara was approached by woman with black hair that seemed to go down her back with a few grey streaks in it. She introduced herself as Meredith Dumont, which Sara could have guessed herself based on her accent and knowing a little bit about the members of the Dumont family. "You're one of the security escorts, am I mistaken?"
"No, ma'am, you're not mistaken. How can I help you?" Sara put on a kind smile, knowing that a place in the bad graces of any Dumont family member is not where she wanted to be.
"Wonderful. My daughter, Naomi, is supposed to be wed today but she was running late and my younger son, Elias, stayed with her until she was ready. I would greatly appreciate it if someone went to go get them." Meredith seemed to have the same formal posture that a lot of higher-up family members did with her hand crossed politely in front of her.
Luke listened in on the conversation, ready to intervene when Sara slipped up and said something that would probably get her in trouble with Meredith. Meredith gave Sara the address and returned to her formal posture, waiting for Sara's response.
Instead, Sara watched her tone and words with the most precision she had used in a long time. "I can get that done for you, I'll leave right away."
Sara left without another word and excused herself for the presence of Luke and Steven, going to speak with another woman who had blonde hair and was dressed in a purple skirt that was matched with a white blouse.
After the two women left, Luke and Steven went around the venue, introducing themselves as the security for the day. While the idea was his own, Luke didn't exactly like it, mainly because he already knew most the people there.
Steven seemed as disinterested in it as Luke himself was, but they both knew it was their duty to do the job and they had no other choice. Things seemed to be going fine until they began meeting members of the organization. Luke had been made aware that Alyssa would have to bring a high-risk 'patient' that it was her job to keep track of. Her job was to not leave this patient's side or allow him to leave hers. The reasoning for that was because the normal chips that would be used to wipe memories didn't work on him, indicating that he was a captive of the Voyagers at some time. "Alyssa, introduce yourself to Steven and tell him a bit about your dog, I think he'll find it interesting considering his job."
Alyssa didn't seem too amused by Luke's comment but shook Steven's hand anyways. "My name is Alyssa Kowalska, I'm the fourth floor internal executive." She looked around her, pointing out a man with brown hair. "That is Milo Neil, a former Voyager that I've been tasked of watching every minute of the day."
Luke picked up a reading on Steven, a sudden sense of astonishment, with underlying emotions of horror and sadness. "Why do you have to watch him like that?"
"He remembers everything about his time with the Voyagers, however, he won't reveal anything and we certainly believe he's capable of finding a way out of his keeping area, so he's required an armed guard to watch over him." Steven knew Alyssa was just doing her job, however, he picked up on a small glimpse of remorse for what she did.
Sara Jacobson
Sara went to the address Meredith had given her and retrieved Naomi and Elias, just as she had been asked to. Naomi took the front seat, Elias climbing to the back without argument. Elias seemed more excited than Naomi herself did, but Sara could only guess that it was because he was allowed out of school for the the wedding and the day after it.
"Ms. Dumont, you look stunning, if I may say." Sara knew that remaining radio silent and making things awkward between the two of them wasn't the best thing she could do, and perhaps it was close to the worst.
Naomi offered a small smile, giving Sara a chance to see the resemblance between Naomi and Meredith. "Thank you, Agent Jacobson. You seem to be in high spirits today, is there any specific reason?"
"Not really, it's just a good day so far." Sara took a glance at Elias through the rear view mirror before returning her vision to the road. "I'm sure you two hear this all the time, but look very similar to each other."
"I do hope you're not calling my qualities masculine." Naomi chuckled from the passenger seat, knowing what Sara had meant.
"Well, I was more so going for physical resemblances, such as the hair and the eyes, but no, your qualities are not masculine." Sara went silent for a minute. "That's not to say you don't look dapper yourself, Elias."
Naomi began laughing, much to Elias's embarrassment. "Elias doesn't often use such formal words, so you'd be better off saying he looks good and leaving it at that."
The two siblings began talk to each other, allowing Sara to keep to herself while she drove, only occasionally being spoken to. Her main goal was to make Naomi a bit happier before they reached the venue, which she believed she did.
When they reached the venue, Elias had gone to meet with his parents and other siblings while Naomi as escorted to a different location by Isaac Hampton himself.
Steven met up with Sara, but Luke had gone to where he was stationed, signaling that the event was beginning soon. She noticed that he looked a little frightened, perhaps nervous, but she knew better than to ask why when they were surrounded by government agents.
The weddings began and at least five couples went before Naomi and Anthony. Anthony had been keeping a low profile the entire day, which the agents could only speculate the reasoning to.
Naomi seemed more nervous than she was on the way to the venue, but she stood in front of the arches with a brave face. She wore a long white dress with her curly brown hair draped around her appropriately.
Anthony didn't seem nervous at all. he seemed quite confident in himself as he delivered his vows to Naomi and to the Onyx Organization, causing his parents, who sat front row at a table next to Naomi's family, to gleam with pride. There was a younger woman seated at the table who had brown hair put in a ponytail. She looked uncomfortable with her own attire, but nonetheless happy for her brother.
Meredith and her husband, Louis, both seemed extremely proud of their daughter as she put on a strong smile, knowing she was currently the face of the Dumont family name. There was a woman with her black hair put up in a bun. She wore a light green dress that brought out her eyes, paired with red lipstick. 'A bold fashion move,' Sara thought. 'but she pulls it off'. To her right was Elias and to his right was another man. The man was likely Naomi's older brother. He has black hair that looked to be slicked back with gel, a black suit that was similar to Louis's suit, and a silver watch. While Louis and the older son wore black suits, Elias wore a brown one. Meredith wore a black dress that best complemented her black hair.
Sara continued looking over the people in attendance, seeing plenty of people she already knew from just strolling through the worker's apartments. She spotted the woman she had met the day before, Alyssa Kowalska, easily identified by her curly red hair. She seemed to be sitting a distance away from most other people except for a man that was next to her. The man had brown hair that seemed to stick up.
Finally, Isaac stood close to the arch, keeping an eye on the people and the ceremony from there. He stuck out because of his blond hair, which Sara knew many people didn't have. He also stood out due to his protective nature of the ceremony.
As Sara went to look away from Isaac, he looked at her from across the room, their eyes meeting for a few seconds before Sara jerked her head towards Steven in an act of fear and submission causing Steven to look at her, a little confused as she panicked a bit, but knowing better than to have casual conversations at a wedding, he stayed quiet.
It was finally Naomi's turn to deliver her vow, which was interesting for most people because they knew she wasn't really a social person, despite having the title of a socialite. Perhaps that was because they all knew Anthony and how he held true to his job of representative of the Onyx Organization.
In Naomi's vow, she spoke of her original hesitant stance towards marriage, which just a look could tell that it disappointed her parents. However, she went on to admit that she did have feelings for Anthony and that regardless if their wedding was arranged or by choice, she would continue to love him and stand by his side. She finished off her vow by swearing to make Anthony, her family, the Richardson family, and the Onyx Organization proud.
They sealed their wedding with a kiss and went to socializing with their respective families. Anthony's family seemed happy to have Naomi join them. Lyla and Amanda, Anthony's mother and younger sister, seemed to really enjoy talking to her. Anthony's father, Bradly, had gone to speaking with Louis, taking well to getting to know each other. Anthony spoke with Naomi's brothers and sister while Meredith took to looking over the two tables and keeping things under moderation.
Luke had also gone to speak with Anthony's family, seeming to know Amanda. Sara felt a sense of relief as the event drew closer to a closing until she realized that she and Steven had both lost track of Isaac. That was until he approached the two from behind, a wide grin on his face.
"Mr. Hampton, how can we help you?" Steven was just as nervous as Sara, but not as willing to show it.
Isaac stopped walking when he was just a few inches away from them, his grin not going away. When he spoke, his voice was quiet, but able to be heard over the roar in the venue. "I have a proposition for the two of you. Don't speak for a minute or two and listen." Isaac cut Steven off as he went to speak. "I've been told that you two are pretty good friends and I noticed how intently you were both watching over the ceremonies. I want to reward you both with a wedding of your own."
"Sir, with all due respect, we're not-" Steven stopped, reminding himself that he had told her that she would have the say in it earlier that day.
Isaac waited for Steven to continue, realizing he wouldn't. "I know it's a big choice, but I believe it'll be good for the both of you and the city itself. It'll be good publicity because we've never had two agents marry in public."
"Mr. Hampton, I don't think it'll be good for publicity. We're not really well known around here because of how often we're gone." Sara finally spoke up, her voice very shaky.
"Nonsense. I understand that you're friends with plenty of people around here and Mr. Suggs had gone around with Mr. Lowell and greeted the guests, so you two are fairly known." He walked past the two back into the venue doors. "I'll let you two think about it, you know where to find me."
Isaac left Sara and Steven, but not on a good note. Steven looked to Sara to see her shaking with anxiety. "It's still your choice to make. I think he gave you the option to say no."
A choice here decided that Elizabeth would agree to Isaac's idea.
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