2007-07-28: DF: Interrogation And Posturing

Starring:

DFClaudine_icon.gif Felix_icon.gif DFGeorge_icon.gif Orion_icon.gif

Summary:

With Claudine having gotten caught while freeing some prisoners, there is a brief interrogation by Felix and George. Orion comes to save the day and she gets free. Hooray!

Dark Future Date: July 28th, 2009

Interrogation and Posturing


HS HQ in NYC

Picture it. Brooklyn, 2009. George is leaning against another wall, hands in pockets, eyeing Claudine. Particularly her wrists. "Feel up to having that talk now?" he asks.

Felix is out of the SWAT-type gear, back in normal civilian clothes, though his suit hangs on him - he's gaunt, and it no longer fits as it once did. He's merely regarding Claudine with patience and curiosity - this is George's show, at least for now.

The young woman had been silent the entire time. She was a fully trained Company agent. She had killed. She had maimed. She had even interrogated. So, when she's asked the question, she remains in stony silence, strong and never moving emulating the element that she has a domain over. Unless of course she wants said earth to move under their feet.

George takes Claudine's silence as an invitation to go ahead. "You're aware that there were civilians in those vehicles you trashed?" Yeah, let's cut right to the chase here.

Felix is neither particularly large or threatening. The utter silence and rather reptilian patience with which he regards Octavia is borderline creepy, however. But he's not gonna make motions towards breaking knees until George gives a signal.

If it had been two years ago, killing innocent civilians in the crossfire would have made the woman break down and cry. Such is the case no longer as she simply blinks a few times and swallows a little, those being her only show of remorse. She's looking down at the ground, trying to feel the earth underneath their feet. But surely, they've nullified her powers in some sort of capacity, and not feeling her surroundings..is a very odd sensation for the young woman. "This is a war. If anything, at least they're in a better place now." Gasp! She speaks!

George makes a sour face, folding his arms over his chest. "That sounds like the sort of thing we're always being accused of. 'We had to destroy the village in order to save it'?" Shaking his head, he leans back again. "Seriously, what were you trying to do back there? Just screw with Homeland Security at all costs?"

"Spoken like a true mujahid," Felix's tone is decidedly uncomplimentary, though his posture remains offhand. For a moment the ceiling is apparently more interesting than the prisoner.

"Part of my people are Muslim. I am Roman Catholic. I will pay for my sins later.." Claudine says softly once more, keeping her rather stony demeanor as she swallows a little once more. "The president is a corrupt man. All that he stands for, all that you follow are corrupt ideals. I merely fight to make sure people are free. I thought those were the foundations America was built on. Freedom and equality for all."

"America is in a state of national emergency," George replies, "no one seriously disputes that." (Actually, it's technically been in one for over a decade, but not on anything like the current scale. Trufax.) "I'll grant that you were trying to do the right thing— doesn't mean you were doing the smart thing." Having thus said his piece, he glances over to Felix, then to a TV set off in another corner of the room somewhere.

<IC-Radio> "We interrupt your scheduled programming for this broadcast live from the White House." A typical image. President Nathan Petrelli is seated at his desk in the Oval Office, staring seriously down the camera. "When I think back to the war that tore apart New York City, my home as well as the home of countless citizens, I no longer feel anger towards those that caused it. I only feel sadness for those that were driven to strike out as they did. Because it is out of misunderstanding and intolerance that their hand was forced, and as President of the United States, it is my duty to this country to ensure that this will never happen again." His hand touches the sheets of paper in front of him briefly, before he continues.

<IC-Radio> "During my campaign, I made a decision to be honest with America. That I wouldn't hide what I was to the people I intended to lead. I announced that I had the ability to fly. I believe that my subsequent election was a message from America - that the Evolved wanted a leader. They wanted hope. They wanted to believe that good could come from people like them. It is with this message in my heart that such recent decisions have been made, and I believe that only the unpatriotic, that only the hateful, could possibly stand in my way."

<IC-Radio> "A good leader has an obligation to protect his people, as well as an obligation to better them. To the Humans of America, I speak to you now: cooperation is its own reward, and to rebel against the laws of our country is to rebel against the freedom such laws preserve. I am a father and a husband, and I would protect this country as I would protect my own family. Rebellion will not be tolerated."

"Free?" Felix wonders, one brow arched. "Merely protesting isn't enough - you had to resort to terrorism?" His tone is very stern.

<IC-Radio> "I ask that all of us, Evolved and Human, remember the values of America and America's people in the wake of disaster. We are a country of progress, of forward movement. We are a country that recognises it's own strength." For those watching on TV, something interrupts the picture. A moth, perhaps, skitters across, but is gone in a blink, and President Petrelli gives one final nod to his audience. "We are a country of evolution. Thank you."

<IC-Radio> We now return to your schedule program.

"How did this nation become free? That wasnt protest. That was full out war. I choose the side of humanity..of all of us so that that man.." she says, pointing towards the TV with her lips, like good Filipinas do. "Nevermind..you've all been brainwashed.." she grumbles softly.

George shrugs. "I haven't been, but I doubt I'll convince you of it. The point of the Second Amendment is that a broken government /should/ be overthrown… we 'just' disagree on whether it's broken now."

And Felix merely snorts at that, eyes narrowing in disdain. "We're not the ones who've been brainwashed," he says, tone acid.

<IC-Radio> As the audio feed from the White House fades, a ruckus can be heard. A panic if you will, as people scream, furniture and equipment are knocked over.

"He just said this is a progressive nation? Progressive nations do not capture their own people for lacking the ability to fly or to manipulate the elements. Just because we have these abilities does not make us superior in any way, shape or form. We are not the rulers of humanity. If anything, we should be their stewards, championing their ideals and making the world a better place to live. When I was younger, I thought my powers could help feed nations by terraforming. Now, to save people from the likes of their corrupt government, I will do what I must.." Claudine says firmly and reoslutely.

George starts to argue some more, but frowns at the TV instead. "Well, crap. Watch the till, would you?" he says to Felix, walking off and withdrawing a cell phone. Numbers are punched with nervous purposefulness.

Felix only barely refrains from rolling his eyes at Claudine's response. And then George is handing her off to him. "Will do," he says, calmly. Once George's back is turned, Felix very deliberately winks at her.

Claudine stiffles a snicker, keeping her stony countenance with her voice firm and full of conviction. "There..the president seems to have gotten what was coming to him. We evolved are a minority. What he has done is effectively made this country something it was never meant to be..apartheid."

"We -are- superior. We are the next step in human evolution. The old model is obsolete, like Neanderthals," Felix's tone remains even. Hand him the jackboots and the Luger, kids.

With George gone, Felix relaxes, just fractionally. He makes a tiny motion of one finger - even with the live observer no longer present, it's likely that they're being watched and recorded, still.

Needing to keep up the ruse, she just stares at Felix. "So what are you going to do now? Break my legs? I noticed there were no miranda rights given..how awfully convenient. the Patriot act indeed.." Claudine says with a bit of bitterness and anger in her tone.

Felix's smile is a fairly ugly thing to behold, as he leans across the table towards her. "I'm thinking about it," he says, and his tone is simply filled with unpleasant insinuation. Might as well camp it up while you have the chance.

Claudine shakes her head and spits at his feet. No longer resembling the strength of mountains, her rage is more like seething magma now. "Do it..see what I care.."

He's dismayingly quick, as he lunges over the table to take her by the throat of her shirt. He leans in to hiss into her ear - it looks like he's whispering threats or obscenities, but what he actually murmurs is, "Good acting. You know who I am, right?" Leaning back just sufficiently to meet her eyes, he adds, for the benefit of any surveillance gear. "And that's what I'd do to you, if it were up to -me."

"I know you. You're the man I'm going to have to kill to get out of here.." she says threatening also for the purpose of the surveillance gear, though she speaks in tones barely above a whisper afterwards. "I do, but how am I getting out of here with your idiot boss outside?"

Felix settles back in his chair with great deliberation. "No. I've got a nemesis already," he says, with a flicker of humor in his gaze. "And it ain't you."

"Good, cause you know I'd wipe the floor with you." Claudine says, continuing the posturing as she tries to fill herself with a righteous rage, being the good actress that she is..

"Keep barking, little doggy, but no one's letting you off the leash. Listen. Where's your base? We know you don't work alone," He's up on his feet again, to pad around to her side of the table lightly.

Claudine just laughs at the question as she grins wryly, in an almost predatory fashion. "Base? I control the very earth underneath your feet. The entire planet is my base. If you relaly want to know, it's in the earth's core..cause that's how I roll.." posturing until the very last part, where she's just being snarky.

Felix puts his hands on her shoulders, as if offering a backrub. And then his fingers tighten, though it's not yet to the point of pain. "Really?" he wonders, tone still casual.

"Yes, for you see, I have made a small little chamber where I have my weapon of doom that will reverse the polarity of the planet. That's kind of my sooper seekrit weapon of destroying President Petrelli.." Claudine says with a soft snicker, hissing a little as the fingers tighten.

"Let me guess. You're going to hold us all hostage for the sum of ONE MILLION DOLLARS?" The Agent's voice is still mocking, acid.

It is about this point that the one way glass in the interrogation room cracks. It doesn't break, not yet, but spider webs of cracks shoot out from an enormous central point. From the looks of things, it likely started from some sort of enormous impact on the other side of the glass.

"You figured out my plan! You get a cookie!" Claudine beams brightly before she lets out a soft snicker, shaking her head a little. "You know..I dont see why you needed to cancel out my abilities. If we evolved are the next step in humanity, why arent you worshipping me instead? If anything, I'm better than all of you put together.." she says snarkily, though the crack in the one way glass does catch her attention. "Now isnt that interesting.." she says, wetting her lips with her tongue.

Felix turns away from her, in a quick motion, hand going for the gun at his waist. This wasn't expected. He looks back to her, quickly, expression unreadable. What's going on? Do you know?

The next impact is audible. It is a horrible sound like steel on glass. A half second later a large metal fist punches through the reinforced glass. Shards of the glass fly inside of the room, one or two skidding across the table, the rest crashing to the floor. None come particularly close to striking Claudine or Felix.

Another second or so later a second metal fist crashes through the glass, though this time the new cracks spread outward and intersect the old cracks. Within ten seconds the one way glass is spread out in a tremendous heap on both sides of the window. On the other side is a tall man, nearly six and a half feet tall with shoulders not unlike a linebacker. He looks upset and to be cast from steel. Cold. Hard. Steel.

The instant she sees the metallic fist punching through the reinforced glass a wry grin curls onto her lips. "Be glad you didnt break my legs, or you would've gotten him really upset.." Claudine says with a wry waggle of her brows. She's always been impressed with Orion's prowess, but this..is just hot. A soft chuckle escapes from her lips as the second metal fist crashes on through and Orion has come to the rescue.

She turns to Felix, giving him a 'you're boned' kinda look and says, "You want to know what's going on? The cavalry has arrived.." She's still tied down to the chair with whatcould be assumed to be handcuffs keeping her there. "Apologize to him and maybe he wont beat you to a pulp?

Talk about a rock and a hard place. Felix doesn't dare out himself in terms of his true allegiances. Which means he is going to have to take a hell of a beating. He's already got his radio in hand, yelling for backup…..and his gun in the other. "Freeze," he says, calmly. It's not Orion he's aiming for, but Claudine's head. "You twitch, I blow her away."

"You kill her and you will not die for a very, very long time after you start wishing you could."

Orion's voice is as cold as the steel he seems to be cast from, but there is a quaver to it that suggests he is bluffing. Fortunately, Orion can arrest his ability to twitch by being made of metal. Even so he narrows his steel-covered eyes at Felix and rumbles ominously.

"If you were going to, you already would have."

Well, there is the rock, the young woman who is seated. And the hardplace, Orion.

Claudine's eyes widen as she gasps with terror. This..actually does freak her out, but it does lend to the credibility of this whole..play per se. She swallows nervously and waits to see what happens. she's heard being shot sucks..and doesnt want to experience it.

Felix's lip curls. "You're lying," he says, voice low and amused, eyes narrowing. And then there's a fractional flick of his thumb on the gun - calling attention to the fact that the safety is still very much on. He might bludgeon her with it, but he sure as hell won't be firing it. "You can kill me. But I'll take her with me. And she's what you're here for, clearly."

"Allow me to explain how this is going to work. You're clearly not very good at this."

Granger draws his hands back and to his side, metal eyes staring soullessly at Felix. Perhaps even through him. His face does not smile, it does not frown, it just points forward impassively.

"You cannot harm me. You are cognizant of that. However you think that by poorly threatening to kill her you will stop me from what? Killing you? I have restrained myself. The men out here are not dead… Yet."

It is at this point that a single slender spike of metal starts to extend from the back of his left hand. It seems to be made of some sort of gellid metal until it reaches a foot long and less than an inch thick along its entire length. As the tip turns pointy, the metal hardens to something as steely as the rest of Orion's body.

"I can just as easily walk back out the way I came, leaving her here for you. Your men will not live if I do so. And I promise you, you will not sleep again. You will have to be ever vigilant. Waiting for me to return. Waiting for me to kill you. Waiting for me to take her. Waiting."

The metal spike finishes hardening with a clock-tick-like click.

As she hears this, Claudine remains quiet, not quite sure how to react. The fact that he's willing to leave her miffs her a bit, but the fact that he's going to kill all those men for her..hot. Either way, she's torn.

So, the young Filipina looks over towards Felix, knowing that he's a double agent, but also knowing that he has to act like he's on the side of the government. What is he going to do? Is he going to let all those men die? Will Orion actually kill him? Who knows…

"Will you let her go?" is Orion's reply, his voice a steely grate. The tall man stares at Felix very pointedly while a second slim spike extends from the back of his right hand. A third one starts to protrude from his right elbow, projecting backward.

Watching the machismo between the two men, Claudine just waits in silence, waiting to see what the resolution will be.

Let's hope Orion can read lips. Because Felix mouths, barely perceptible, "Hit me,"

The Man of Steel suddenly leaps through the window. He tucks into a shockingly tight somersault in mid-air and lands on his feet, moving forward with not unsurprising speed. He is made of metal after all. Granger drops into a shoulder roll though and comes up, flying upward to wrap one hand around Felix's wrist and yank the gun away from Claudine's head while the other one suddenly liquefies.

The liquid metal fist jerks forward like a half-inch punch again and again, pummelling Felix in multiple locations, some of which may be pressure points or nerve clusters. It looks flashy and all, but anyone good at finesse fighting might call the overall execution sloppy. It looks it would still /HURT/ though. Metal plus precision hits? Pain.

Close enough for government work. On many levels. And Felix doesn't last long against that assault, deliberately not using his own powers. It's only a moment or two before he's a crumpled heap, limp in Orion's grasp, apparently unconscious.

Yes, she may be a righteous young woman, but even she didnt want this man hurt that badly. But if it means he can keep his cover and not be discovered then so be it, wincing a little as she swallows a little nervously, hoping her beau didnt do any lasting damage.

"We need to get out of here. He called backup.."

And she motions towards her handcuffs which keep her bound to her chair. "He probably has the keys..and I dont think I can dig us a tunnel out until the effects of their Haitian pills wear off.."

Unless of course, what was given wasnt Haitian pills. Felix might've been sneaky.

Orion tosses Felix aside like so much garbage. He turns toward Claudine and her bonds, his punching hand curling into a tight fist as the metal suddenly hardens so fast and so tremendously that it cracks. The tall man takes a very karate-inspired pose behind the chair, feet spread to shoulder width and he sucks in a deep breath as he lines up his shot.

His fist plunges down in a tremendous blow, metal-on-wood shrieks filling the air as he annihilates the handcuffs in their entirety with the single punch. A moment later the back of the chair simply collapses to the ground in a heap on top of which the bracelet portions of the handcuffs fall with a tinny clang-clank a few seconds later.

"We'll go out the same way I got in, the window down the hall faces out on an under-patrolled alley."

Cling clang! Claudine winces as the cuffs fall off. Considering he had given that much force in his blows, she's surprised her boes arent broken from the hit, though she lets out a loud oomph as she falls onto her bottom as her chair gets broken.

She wrinkles her nose while moving her hands up and down to make sure they're all right. Once she's satisfied, she eases on up and nods, running her fingers through her hair as she takes Felix's gun, this time clicking off the safety. She's gotten better with guns due to her agent training, and this time seems to be as good as any, just in case things get bad on the way out.

"All right. Let's do it. And thanks for getting me out of here, hun. I owe you.." waiting for him to lead the way.
Felix has left.

"You don't owe me. I'd do it for any beautiful rookie that got herself captured," replies Orion, his tone suddenly good-natured. He moves back toward the shattered glass on the floor and the wide open window. His metal hands sweep the glass out of the way as the sounds of the goon patrol starting to move in can be heard down the halls.

Orion frowns slightly to himself but glances over his shoulders at Claudine. "Shall your knight carry you to safer lands, m'lady?"

A wry grin curls onto her lips as she hops up onto his back, wrapping her legs around his waist. "As long as I'm the only beautiful rookie.." she whispers, waggling her brows, "That you're sleepin with.." giggling impishly as she lets out a good natured laugh.

"You're the only beautiful rookie for me, Dine."

The tall man's metal-frozen hand suddenly unclenches. Enormous, sharp metal claws extend from the tip of every finger as he darts through the broken doorway of the watch room. Granger turns a corner in the hallway and sprints toward the end of the hall just as the FBI agents start swarming the hall behind them.

Orion leaps out the shattered window, Claudine on his back, and somersaults just once before his clawed fingers and toes sink into the building's masonry. He quickly climbs down the side of the building and into the alleyway below, occasionally launching into space to flip and somersault about, cutting time off of the descent before he digs his claws back in again.

He's gotten stronger, faster and more nimble it seems. Somersaulting in the air while hanging on to someone's back for dear life is definitely an experience. She wasnt even able to respond to his sweet little quip before she's letting out eeks and exhilarated laughs throughout the whole experience.

Eventually, when they reach the ground, she unwraps herself from his back and takes a breather. Her chest is heaving as she's huffing and puffing even though she didnt do anything. The rush of adrenaline seemed to be enough.

"You are too sweet, hun.." she beams, patting his scruffy cheeks gently before looking up towards the top of the building. "Come on..let's go!" she says, letting her fingers entwine with his own before starting to run as fast as she can.

It is probably a bad idea to take a breather in the alleyway. Several FBI agents are firing down at them. Not many since A) discharging their service weapon is generally a bad thing like the NYPD, B) shooting straight down into an alley is bad procedure, C) shooting at things that bullets ricochet off of is similarly bad procedure, D) killing suspects is just bad press man.

Orion lets Claudine take her breather though. He moves between her and them, both of his forearms coming up and together. Metal seethes and bubbles out of his forearms as it spreads out into an enormous tower shield. Granger winces as the bullets spang and clang off of it, spraying around the alley way as Orion waits.

"If you wouldn't mind getting the manhole cover? I have my hands full."

"Yeah, I can see that.."

Claudine still eeks at the sound of gunshots. All that agent training, and she's still slightly a combat wuss. She lifts up the manhole cover though, rolling it to the side before, starting to head on in. "If I had my powers, they'd so be getting it right now.." she grumbles, hating it when she loses her connection to the earth. She sighs, and grabs onto the sides, putting her feet on the sides of the ladders before sliding all the way down.

Oomph! She's landed at the bottom, looking up towards him. "Come on! Let's go! The shooters arent the only ones I'm sure, and until I regain my powers, losing them is going to be difficult."

"No, they wouldn't. We would be so getting the hell out of here the easy way."

Orion backs up to the hole and drops into it, hanging on by the tower shield for several seconds before it disappears back into his body. Granger drops down, landing with a tremendous *WHOOMPF* of metal on concrete and… Ick. A wave of it washes outward from him, up to Claudine's knees.

A moment later, his body returns to flesh and blood. Orion promptly starts jogging down a tunnel with more confidence than one might expect.

Ewww. Gross. Claudine winces a little as she's now covered in utter grossness and continues jogging behind him, closing her eyes for a few moments to see if she can feel the earth around her once again. Nope..nothing. She curses under her breath as she cants her head, looking at him a bit.

"How'd you find me? How did you even know I was captured?"

"You didn't show up at the rendezvous as planned. I went looking. Found people. They gave me a rough idea of where you had been. I went looking some more. Interrogated some government goons and got a location. I went down to the Hall of Records and got some maps of the area and then I came to get you."

Orion continues to lead the way through a confusing series of sewer tunnels until, rather abruptly, he disappears into the darkness of a wall and into one of Claudine's tunnels beyond. Ahhh… Home sweet hometurf.

Following him the entire time, she ahhs and nods, use to the stench of the sewers now, since she had to shape some of them to provide better means of transportation for the others. She only relaxes once they reach one of her better known tunnels and she leans against the wall, relaxing for a bit.

Once she finally caught her breath, she tries to pull Orion by his shirt collar to her for a deep kiss. It's a show of appreciation really and she grins wryly, waggling her brows a bit.

"That's for getting me out. You'll get another and then some once we're home." she says matter of factly, but then she remembers something. "The trio I was able to free. Are they okay?"

Orion pulls back from the kiss after a few moments of letting it linger. He smiles at Claudine and shrugs, "They should be. I gave them good directions to a safe house. One of the trustworthy ones." The tall man gently wraps his arms around her and squeezes the Fillipina tight to him. "You going to keep getting caught by the feddies? I really don't know how many times I can bust you out before they start catching on."

"I over did it." she admits ruefully, sighing a little as she wrinkles her nose and gives the tall, older man a squeezy hug as she rests her head against his muscular frame. "I tried meeting with some people who still remember our antics back with Primatech. Dont exactly trust me, so I thought I'd give them a little show." Claudine says matter of factly.

"I'm tired of being kept out of the loop. We are fully trained agents. We know how the Feds think. We were taught that way. If anything we should be helping Peter and his little alliance instead of getting sent out not fully trusted to do things.." she grumbles, sounding quite bitter about the whole thing.

"It's the price we pay."

Orion smiles warmly at Claudine and kisses her cheek, keeping her held close. The tall man sighs a little and gently tugs her out of the sewers and into the tunnels proper, leaning up against an earthen wall with her, resting his head against hers.

"And it's a penance I will pay if it means undoing the wrong things I've done."

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