Summary:In which Hank summons Daisy to a meet and recruits her to work with SHIELD on tracking down a mysterious evil hacker or group of hackers by using her a mole to ferret out the others Log Info:Storyteller: None |
Related LogsTheme SongNone |
  |
Daisy would be doing her usual thing, whatever that might be, perhaps she's tweaking one of her Walls of Cray-Cray? Who knows! Certainly not Hank. All he knows is that she is potentially in danger, and as she's a contact of his — some might even call her an 'intelligence asset', no, not a little donkey! Regardless, as she is a person of interest to the man he can't just idly stand by. Further, he needs her help, so it is a double need to contact her.
His text is brief and to the point:
Must meet asap. 911. Address to follow.
The address sent proves to be to another parking structure, this one in Queens, right on the banks of the Flushing River in the northern part of central Queens.
It is a measure of Hank's level of interest that he's there a full ninety minutes early, this time in his own car, a dark blue Ford Grenada, circa 1978 - the rather boxy car having been lovingly restored to better than new.
Turnabout's fair play, right? The last time they had met Skye didn't give Hank any forward notice so much as what amounted to 'get your mutant butt over here.' When the favor is returned she couldn't really brush it off even if for some reason she -didn't- want to be where the action is.
Stuffing the larger half of a slice of pizza into her mouth she flips the box closed and climbs into the front of her van. Yes, she does spend most of her life inside that box on wheels.
When the familiar old GMC rolls in with its engine idly chugging along she follows a page from Hank's book and parks on the opposite side of the aisle, its idle soon replaced with the ticking of heat pings. He'll immediately recognize the familiar hackerette as she swings legs around and hops down from the taller van, giving the door a hearty shove to get it closed behind her.
"I'm gonna go ahead and assume that you didn't actually -want- me calling nine-one-one when you sent that. So… What's up, big guy?" she inquires with a smile.
Also an amusing dance custom for high schoolers! Sadly, nobody wanted to invite the big, burly, freakishly proportioned guy - Hank didn't get to go to too many social events when he was a kid, and once he enrolled at Xavier's there ware other things to take up his time, and then of course in pursuit of multiple doctorates after he got to college level…yeah, guy hasn't had a lot of opportunities in those things until very recently.
Once he sees the HackerMobilie approaching, Hank climbs out of his car — it is notable that the thing doesn't rock at all, those shocks and suspension MUST be heavily custom, and the paint fairly gleams. He probably treats it with a ceramic wash to keep it clean and essentially impervious to water. Men and their toys!
Approaching, he smiles. "No, Skye, I did not want you to call 9-1-1, it was intended as a sign that this is somewhat urgent." Hank agrees. "Thank you for coming so swiftly, short notice and all." And especially since she knows he works with 'The Division', as she so quaintly referred to it. "Have you noticed anything unusual going on with your friends and associates in Rising Tide?" Well, that's sort of pointed! Concerning too.
Skye's juuust about to make some comment about Hank's car when he begins to speak. At the thanks for the swift response time she dips her head in something of a nod. No problem! It's not like she had been geeking out online all by herself, or anything.
That the new FX-99K happened to be announced today had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with that, either. Honest!
..Skye's gonna need a lot more money…
There may be another reason why Hank didn't have a lot of dating action back in the day. Within a matter of seconds he's gone from a friendly greeting to a question which immediately raises the girl's suspicion. Skye's arms slowly fold together as she pins Hank with a level stare. "Define 'unusual'…" she asks with clear skepticism. This here is very personal territory the man is choosing to tread, particularly since they don't seem to be on the same level in regards to her ..long-distance associates.
He does love him some Matilda (Yes, he named his car! In fact he named her after the female lead of The Professional).
No, he'd never ever even hint that she was doing geekish stuff, nope! Not Hank. He knows that would be 'pot kettle black' action of the highest order and he's not that inclined to be so.
Ahem.
And yeah, the FX-99K /is/ sweet!
Hank was always a very studious fellow, and though he's learned to be a lot more socially adept over the years, he does have a tendency to either ramble, or be off-puttingly direct at times. So, yeah, odd manner, intimidating mind AND intimidating body - might well have been factors. "Have there been any new joins that seem 'off' to you? Has anyone you associate with there gone missing, or silent for an extended period? Have any of your friends or associates acted out of character?"
One of Skye's brows curls upward as Hank explains himself. Yeah, the guy's well connected and smarter than she is by a large magnitude but he isn't a part of the Rising Tide, himself… That he would be asking such a direct question about their movement is peculiar, to say the least.
Up front she looks irritated to be talking about the crew with Hank. He's the one that wanted to restrict the information from this investigation! ..Okay, he's ONE of the ones that wanted to. Thus, the attitude that she's now giving off is 'what the heck do -you- care?'
The thought is never given words as she breaks eye contact to look down and off to the side. Her head shakes with an errant flick of a hand. "Yah..sure. Whatever. Rasta's been a little out of sorts lately." 'Rasta-Blasta' a real Bob Marley 'one love' sorta guy. He always had a big heart if you could get past the culture barrier and figure out what on earth he was saying. Text communication helps. Somewhat.
"Distracted," she adds with a pause and a slight shrug. "Distant. And CodeSweeper. I mean it's not -totally- unusual for him to vanish without a word for weeks on end, but… I don't know. It just felt a little..different..?" she thinks aloud, giving Hank an uncertain look with the edge of a lip caught between her teeth. "Codey's always been an oddball, I haven't given it a lot of thought."
——
Hank is not oblivious to the girl's doubts and concerns, trust is something that has to be earned - doubly so when dealing with Skye, he's well aware. And yes, he knows that the rather pointed questions are just the sorts of things to get her dander up. As a result he takes it in stride when she clearly goes all wary, and irked looking. He actually gets it!
Hank makes note of the names, of course. Being a hacker himself, he does keep abreast of the 'names' in the field. Hell, Skye might even know his moniker - Palladium Knight. He's not a /big/ name, but he is A name.
Not that she knows it is him.
"Well…as part of another investigation I'm working on, we came across a dead hacker, his computer repurposed to be a remote platform for parties unknown. A crumples sheet of paper onsite was curious, it had the Rising Tide logo on it. So…rather than launch a full on investigation, I thought I'd approach you directly. If Rising Tide is not part of the problem, they're potentially targets, and that would put you in danger."
Beat. Yes, it is clear he's here because he wanted to protect HER. SO not a Fed!
'Dead hacker' is enough to get Skye's immediate attention. The paper, though… Her first reaction comes with a widening of the eyes, her mouth starting to gape open before both hands are brought up to cover the lower portion of her face.
They don't stay there for long. "Okay, no. No, something's off about this," she declares while staring down at the floor and returning her arms to their previous fold. This also doesn't last long as with a distracted motion she frees up her phone and begins frantically swiping and poking at the screen.
"Why would anyone from the Tide have a -printout- of the logo lying around? That's, like… Like—well if you worked for the -Division- you wouldn't have a copy of the SHIELD badge sitting on your desk?"
Then she shifts into a mutter meant more for herself and the phone. "C'mon Codey, tell me that isn't you… You're still around, aren't you? You're always some—" A long sigh. "Last post three weeks ago."
Where before she had been torn between trust and suspicion with Hank now she's torn between 'total conspiracy' and 'danger zone.' When she turns back to Hank there's an almost desperate look in her eyes, a brain tripping over itself in trying to explain, trying to understand. Trying to find a pattern. Outliers. Something's missing but it doesn't stop her from suddenly feeling..scared.
It's a rare moment when Skye doesn't know what to do.
"Oh, I agree, the paper was /crumpled/ up in a waste bin, I don't /think/ they have your friends compromised, but I can't be sure, and one of my colleagues in the Division was all for a full investigation, which would not have been a good thing for Rising Tide." Hank nods. "So, I wanted to reach out to you, and see if you'd be willing to talk with some others of my associates, if Rising Tide IS a target, we need to know why and that means we need access." A nod. "Which is where you come in, if you're willing to work hand in hand with my friends and myself." A pause. "You might actually know my work - I'm Palladium Knight."
The mention of his handle is a /huge/ offering of trust, that's a big deal in hacker circles, and it is plain he did this with intent as an olive branch. As proof of his intentions.
"Skye, I don't want to be more alarmist, but the people who are on the other end of this are /not/ nice, and they /will/ do egregious harm to you, yours and innocent parties alike. What is worst is that we do not KNOW their endgame, and need to find it out." He looks her in the eyes.
"Are you a bad enough dude to save the president?" ONLY Hank would quote an 80's video game as part of a recruitment.
The situation is bad. Then it gets worse. Speak of the Division getting involved, a full-on investigation into the Tide, -asking Skye to work with SHIELD,- and then the biggest bombshell of the day:
She's chatting up THE Palladium Knight. Like..in case today couldn't possibly get ANY more crazy.
"You..? -You're- the Knight. Oh my -god- that piece about Enroc Security last March was just—!
Focus, Skye.
Not nice people. Egregious harm. Unknown endgame. -President?-
The blank stare which she gives Hank is the blank stare to end all other blank stares. Skye.exe has ceased function. Hard reboot in progress.
Another firm headshake. "Is this another one of those 'nine-one-one' things, Hank? Because seriously. Don't mess with my head right now! You're..you're telling me that if -I don't cooperate with SHIELD- AND help them -infiltrate my own crew- that I could wind up DEAD? Is there a lifeline here? Can I have an Option C? Is it too late to flee the damn country? What am I supposed to do! I'm just a keyboard warrior, a—a doofy hacktivist in a van, I'm not exactly assassination target material here!"
The situation is about as bad as it can get, yep. Which is why Hank intervened, admittedly at the suggestion of one of his allies, and approached Skye BEFORE any such investigation were launched. He really is a knight in shining pixels!
He laughs softly at the blank stare. "Video game from the Eighties, 'Bad Dudes'. Fighting game, the tagline of which I quoted in an effort to offer something to ease the tension." A sad nod. "And I failed, it would seem."
A grin a she recognizes him, he's fairly low key, but the things he's gone after have been /vile/, and generally very neatly and efficiently dealt with. Usually ending up with lots of lawsuits and prison terms. Which…fits the guy to a T.
"It really is fairly urgent, Skye. And I'm not asking you to work with SHIELD as such, just some VERY few people there I work with and trust." He gently grips one of the girl's shoulders, it is as non-threatening a gesture as a hulking guy can make, his touch so gentle it can barely be felt. "And you'd be working with me too. I think you need to work with us, quash this vile whatever, and protect yourself, your friends, and countless others." A firm nod, his hand withdrawn. "It is the /right/ thing to do."
"Yah—I'd say so" Skye quickly jumps in when Hank mentions having failed.
One plus for him, he's effectively moved beyond the intimidator role in Skye's life. Perhaps knowing his online alias had been the final deciding factor that she really doesn't have anything to worry about with the Doctor. Besides, it's pretty cool being buddies with Palladium Knight -who also happens to be a mutant.- Serious street cred, right there.
The next sigh has both of her shoulders hanging, the weight of the situation still piling atop of them. "It seems this is the -only- thing to do. It's like..being a mole to..ffferret out another mole for the sake of mole central." She pauses then looks back to Hank again, bluntly stating "If they turn this into a movie I want a cut."
A bit more thought is given before her hands unfold, lift up, then drop to her sides. "I'm backed into a corner, Hank. You know I can't say no. Let's just ..get this done with so I can find whoever's responsible for -screwing up- my life so I can make the rest of theirs -completely miserable.-"
And Hank totally agrees, his brain is rather an odd place, he's got a LOT of stuff shoved in there, a lot of very nerdy stuff from the last several decades. And he doesn't really forget things, not often anyway, his memory is nearly perfect. So yeah, lots of room for the weird, out of date, and esoteric.
He's like the avatar for the book 'Ready Player One'…only with muscles.
He does note the subtle shift in how Skye regards him, and it draws a fond smile. Nobody ever accused Hank of being slow on the uptake, nope. And really, she was so aggressively wary that the absence is pretty hard to miss even with his mental acuity.
"Oh, it is a tough situation, but it is needful, Skye. On the plus side I can pay you, help you support yourself without you having to take risky contracts—you'd be a CI, as well, which means that you'd enjoy some measure of legal protection too. So it is not /all/ bad."
A firm nod when she agrees to the task. "Right then, I'll have to make some arrangements, then we'll have you meet up with my friends and we can get some serious retribution on." Hank smiles. "In the mean time, do you need anything? I can offer you another pre-paid credit card, if you need funds. That said - is there anything more you need? What I can do to help you out right now?"
In truth Hank's already become something of Skye's only real friend in all of New York City thus far. Skye's had good interactions with others before but, as with most situations, she keeps everyone at arm's length and doesn't tend to do a lot of socializing. Having a couple of crises to focus on has given these two something to mutually chew on, acting as a sort of equalizer for leveling the field.
That he's offering to pay her is simply a fantastic bonus on the side.
When asked about what she might need Skye forces out a quick laugh. "You can help me in -not- getting killed, maybe? Because that's pretty high on my list at the moment."
She considers a bit more before shaking her head. "I should go dark. At least until we've made contact with your friends. I mean, I'm good at covering my tracks but if they've already gotten into the Tide then they have some real next level skills."
"And—Hank," she cuts herself off long enough to place hands against the front of his broad shoulders. "You're great. Really. And I appreciate all of your help. But you don't have to keep funneling money my way. I can get by. I'll tell you right now that if you give me another pre-paid card then the first thing I'm going to do is buy myself dinner and an FX-99K. Not necessarily in that order."
For what it is worth Hank has definitely grown fond of the girl, her quirks are actually fairly endearing to him. Friends? He can always use more friends, no question. And hey, she DESERVES to get paid! She's taking significant risks by helping out, and the simple fact is that a lot of the sorts of things she'd have been doing to pay her way are simply not going to be options, he's just being practical. Skye can't do much to help if she's unable to feed herself.
Hank chuckles, and nods. "That's the plan, Skye. You've ferreted out my dark secret - I came here today to try keeping you alive. Well done, Sherlock Skye…ooh…no, better still 'Skyelock'." He is totally hamming up the teasing, but it is in its way fairly endearing. Really, for a big scary guy he's really rather a gentle fellow, like a big teddy bear.
"To this end, I do have some minor safety aids I can offer, if you're up for that." He grins and leads the way back to the trunk of Matilda, she'd probably notice that the keyhole is a decoy, he has a biometric lock under the edge of the thing. Once it opens, he takes out a small case and opens it. Inside is simple stuff, things one can order online easily including: a second chance standard, a couple of flash-bangs, a smoke grenade, two mace cannisters and…wtf…a fountain pen?
He lets her study the gear, and grins when he sees her eyeing the pen.
"Emergency squawker, sends a high powered locator beacon on a very exotic frequency, move the cap to reveal the nib, place it on the end of the pen and then press down on the 'arm' on it three times. It will send your location to me, along with an alert."
He's a little surprised as she calls him Hank, and presses hands to his beefy shoulders. "I /do/. You can't earn it on your own right now, and especially not when you go dark, so I do." A grin. "Maybe I'll just setup a card with a trust, have if limit you to a weekly stipend and no more."
'Sherlock Skye' gets a smirk from the young lady. "Elementary, my dear Coyson."
Yeah, -the fountain pen.- How hopelessly oldschool! "Okay, you totally should have led with 'I have a goodie bag.' And I'm not even gonna ask where you picked up the -grenades- but this stuff sure beats slugging it out with an old tire iron. Thanks a lot, Q."
The money issue isn't over. Frankly Skye doesn't want to fight over the matter, and in truth she COULD use the help. It's more a matter of pride and a personal feeling that Hank feels like he HAS to be giving her handouts.
"Fine. You win. You've hired yourself a hacktivist. Use your newfound powers wisely or there'll be a story about it trending all over social media within three hours," she teases.
The pen is still rolling around in her fingers as she thinks, settling on another question before they part ways. "Is it safe for me to be home? Like my -actual- rented space..not the van. I'm not giving up my van."
Hank is so going to call her Skyelock now. Just you watch.
"Case, it is a case, not a bag." Hank corrects with a wry smirk, and warm laughter lurking in the undertones. Which is very very VERY different than an underwire.
"I love that pen, it writes too, by the way, there's a number of extra cartridges of ink under the foam. As to the grenades…I made them." Of course he made them. "I didn't know if you had any weapons training, or self defense skills, but if you'd like to learn I can help there too. I'm an accredited instructor, and have a few combat skills if you'd like to learn."
Of course he doesn't think of it as 'handouts', he thinks of it as a steady paycheck. Which is a very different way to look at it.
"Oh, if social media were my only concern." Hank says wistfully, and then winks. "Yay! I needed a hireling, you any good at science? I might see about a job as a lab assistant, or I could put in a good word at a school for you as an intern."
He sighs at the last question. "I honestly don't know, I think perhaps you might want to see about renting another place. Or going to ground in Mutant Town, I have contacts there and could arrange hiding space if you wanted? It wouldn't be very high tech, though. Of course you have the HackerMobile."
Yes. He called her van the 'HackerMobile'.
Cue the rolling of the eyes. "-Case,- whatever." Oh, and the pen can also be used as a pen! "Wooow, what a marvel of modern engineering," Skye deadpans. "I'll be sure to have it on hand the next time I'm updating the Declaration of Independence."
And he MADE the grenades. She cautiously picks one up now, curiosity overcoming any sense of self-preservation. "You are a fun guy to know, Hank. Beyond 'smacking them on the head with an automotive tool' my defense kinda stops once they're off the net."
Science? Once again Skye's mouth hangs open slightly, staring at the mutant with a clear look of 'bwuh?' "Really..more of a computer science kinda tech… But yah, hey! If we're building -hand grenades- for extra credit then I might be willing to check it out."
Sheesh, is this guy for real?
Mutant to—did he really just suggest that she stay in Mutant Town?? "Ah… Hank. Buddy. Iii'm..not..a mutant… I'm not even -powered.- I'm preeeetty sure that I'd catch some flak for being the 'little normie girl' around that side of town. I mean..unless you can find some sort of genetic disguise for me where I have blue skin or something."
Oh yes… She knows.
"Oh, it isn't that sort of pen, you'd need an inkwell and probably goose quil, also a penknife to trim it, see, the stem would be hollow and could hold a small amount of ink." Okay, he's just showing off now, or teasing her, maybe a bit of both.
The flashbangs and smoke grenade look well made, no jagged edges, and clearly printed instructions on their sides, just in case. Really, they look pretty professionally constructed in every regard.
Then again, she's seen his visor, so, yeah, he has him some technology chops! Not really surprise he can fashion simple explosives, even if these are on the non-lethal side of things.
"So…do you want to meet and train together a few times a week then? I can get you some basic hand to hand skills in just a few weeks, better in a few months." Yes, he's for real.
"So not lab assistant material, pity." He says with a faint sulk followed by a wink and a garin.
"You actually don't /have/ to be a mutant to live there, there's a fair number of non-mutants that live there, and as I said, I have contacts there. You'd be okay to hide out, sans blue skin and fur, and that's a fact. In fact the location might just be a better place to hide, much of it off the grid, there's little police presence, and few would think to look for you there."
Skye gives Hank another level stare and makes a 'right over the head' gesture with the pen still held in fingertips.
And now she gets to play with explosive devices, apparently. Not what she had in mind when she left Chicago! This really is the gateway to the land of opportunity.
Training. Maybe not a lab assistant (maybe.) Living off the grid surrounded by metahumans. Granted that last bit sounds -A-Maz-ing- for her inner fangirl, just so long as she doesn't get turned into a stain on the sidewalk for not fitting in.
"Yah..alright. Sure. The whole 'Charlie's Angels' thing, the witness relocation program, let's go whole hog here. Maybe then we can stop meeting in dingy underground parking lots. We'll just do everything at my new place because apparently you already know where it is," she decides with a smile which is only partly sarcastic. Maybe mostly sarcastic.
He grins infuriatingly at the level stare, he's lived for years with X-Men, she's got NOTHING on a stare from the likes of quite a few of /them/.
And yes, splody stuff. Maybe REAL splody stuff at some point, but for now the non-lethal should hopefully suffice.
Training is a definite must in Hank's book. I mean, really, a tire iron? Not sufficient. Not by a mile.
"And you can go by Skye there if you like, monikers are the norm, not the exception. I'm Beast there, usually. I'll talk to my contacts there and see if I can't arrange a hidey-hole for you with at least some amenities, like electricity." Yeah, that's a luxury in some parts of Mutant Town, sad, right? "For now, you should go home, get what you absolutely /need/, and ditch the rest. I have already gotten a motel room for short term while the other arrangements are made, it will likely take me a few days. The room is pre-paid for a week…it is not fancy, but it does have a kitchenette, and good wifi. We should probably paint your van too, maybe. If you're not opposed to that."
"Keep your hands off of my van, Hank."