Summary:Jeriah investigates the attack on him. The news isn't great. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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The last attempt on Jeriah London's life resulted in some prisoners. As the hacker had predicted, the mercenaries had either been hired through intermediaries or else were good enough to resist interrogation. No matter. He had other ways of getting information and it started with the satphone they had on them.
He'd taken it apart and been testing both it and it's guts for the past four hours in one of the high security parts of the lab. It's nearing one PM now and he's very seriously thinking of ordering take out for lunch.
The way he blows out a sigh says the news hasn't been entirely good.
Jemma has been concerned about the attempt on Jeriah. For more reasons than one but the most important one - how did they know where to find him.
Looking up from her workbench at the sigh, the biochem appears worried. "I take it, it isn't good news." That's not a question but a statement. "I've got the desks listening for chatter, so far they've not come up with much at all."
"The desks aren't going to hear anything." Jeriah says as he taps one of the pieces of data he's uncovered. It's just a string of numbers. An IP address somewhere in northern Africa. "This is a server that's used by Genoshan intelligence services. That's the one that originates most of the traffic to the satphone the mercs were carrying. So they're the one who authorized and paid for the hit on me."
It's all very circumstantial but Jeriah's not trying to prove anything in court.
"And that means they'll have an operative somewhere in the area to make sure that their people did their job. Which they will know by this point did not happen. Magistrates, they call them when they're in Genosha."
"A Magistrate in New York? That's gutsy." Jemma answers. Genosha is one of those places she detests. Not the place but the people that 'run it'. It's as bad as Madripoor really. "And the desks are still listening, just in case."
She can be stubborn when she wants to be.
"This was hit on you? I mean … it's all conjecture but it's the logical conclusion to draw. I don't like they knew exactly where to find you. How long has it been since you've been scanned for trackers?"
She's grasping at straws, but they knew *exactly* where Jeriah was.
"Oh I'm sure officially the operative in question has no ties to the Genoshan government. But…" Jeriah seems pretty convinced that this is the case. Magistrates tend to be behind the Genoshan end of attacks on him. Normally they are concerned primarily with mutants but Jeriah cost them and now they aim to cost him.
"I scan pretty regularly. They're an intelligence service, Jemma. They track my movements with a variety of means. I'm guessing, though, that they didn't do anything special in this case. I've been in several highly televised street brawls since I got here. Pinning me here isn't actually that difficult."
The question really is: What can they do about it?
Jemma thinks on that, turning away from Jeriah so he can't the concern that she has for this. Not that it helps, he can pick it up easily enough through their link.
"They knew where to find you and when, Jeriah. Knowing you're here and knowing exactly where you will be are two different things. That was a lot of fire power they had concentrated in a small area."
And Jemma knows that Jeriah isn't that predictable.
It's a good question and one that now exercises Jemma. "Do you want to find them and go after them?" It seems the most … reliable thing to do. Not withstanding her own problems, having Jeriah under threat is a risk. It puts most everything they do into a higher risk category.
"Yeah I do." Jeriah nods. "That's really going to be the only way to halt their operations." Find them. Kill them. Nooooot strictly speaking kosher on US soil but there's always the tragedy of someone having been 'shot while trying to escape' or something like that.
"That's going to be tricky though. Magistrates are well trained and they don't leave many clues to their whereabouts. However, given that I'm probably a secondary target, I suggest we focus our search near M-Town. Does SHIELD keep regular tabs there or should we ask the NYPD if they've got anything strange coming across their desks?"
That has Jemma turning back to Jeriah. She can read his thoughts so easily now. Whatever has happened to their connection, she's picking up things she probably shouldn't be. Killing - it's not her go to method but she understands the neccessity.
"Then that's what we'll do." It's clear she wants him safe.
"What do you mean secondary target?" It makes sense when she thinks on it, Genosha tends to target Mutants.
"SHIELD has some visibility of M-Town. We also have some contacts that watch the area carefully - I can check with Hank about that." The X-Men aren't a name that gets spoken a lot, but SHIELD has done several joint operations. "We should contact NYPD as well, though, it won't hurt. There's a new detective down there that seems to focus on this of crime."
"They're not likely to have dispatched a Magistrate JUST to take petty revenge on me by killing me." Jeriah points out. "I'm an annoyance but I'm not that big of an annoyance. Odds are whatever or whomever is in the area had me as part of a larger mission and with magistrates that mission almost invariably involves mutants."
This is not common knowledge though SHIELD may know it. Jeriah, however, has come by this knowledge through be charitably called 'the hard way'.
"NYPD. And.. Ah yes. Hank. The doctor you've been working with." Jeriah hasn't asked why he might have mutant ties but that does make him somewhat suspicious.
"You're worried. I know you've not seen this before but this is fairly… common for me. Ever since I got my implants. They want them back."
"You are an annoyance, I'll grant that." Jemma murmurs. It's a poor attempt to lighten the mood. "Why don't you set up a meeting with Detective Aguilar? I'm sending you her contact details … " She's getting used to that connection between them. Too used to it, really. "Do you have access to my calendar?"
"And yes, Hank. He *is* a mutant you know and works closely with people down in M-Town. He even volunteers at the free clinic down there." Hank doesn't hide he's a mutant. Until recently, he wasn't able to really.
"I've seen things like this before, Jeriah." Jemma sighs. "It's just … " The biochem gives Jeriah a look and doesn't finish. "Yes. I'm worried."
"@emit
"I'll see what I can do. That's the detective that we've seen in here once or twice, yes?" The Hacker quickly goes to look her up in the databases. No. Nevermind he doesn't think he has met her before actually.
"Seen things like what? State sponsored death squads or people targeting mutants?" Everyone over a certain age has seen that. It wasn't really all THAT long ago. Jeriah can remember it though he'd been overseas at the time much as he has been his entire life.
"I'm sure she's been in here, but not for anything we've worked on together." That doesn't mean Jeriah hasn't met her of course, though it is unlikely. "She comes fairly highly recommended from those I've spoken to, though."
Jemma gives Jeriah a look at the question. "Both. I'm not a frail flower that will wilt, you know, and I've worked with SHIELD for a while. It's just …. it's the first time the *target* has been someone I care about."
The last comes out in rush and Jemma blushes.
Jeriah chuckles grimly and leans back in his chair, turning it so he can look at Jemma a bit better. "This HAS happened to me before you know. It's not like it's a new thing." New to Jemma yes but not new to him. He's dealt with these Magistrates before. It isn't easy, they're very skilled, but if he can locate and neutralize him, then this will all be temporarily over.
That's the key though. Temporarily. This will happen again.
"I'm not planning on letting some two bit island spy knock me over."
"So you keep saying and I suppose it's something I'm going to have to get used to." Jemma says tartly turning away again and trying to cool her cheeks. It's not the first new experience for the biochem, after all, just sometimes she wonders what a 'quiet life' would be like.
Boring most likely.
"And I'm not planning on letting one knock you over either. If anyone is going to do that, I'd rather it be—-" She cuts again, this time biting her tongue.
"Did I hear you say something about lunch, just now?" Jeriah hadn't *said* anything - he'd thought it.
"Say?" Jeriah looks at Jemma. She is getting very used to that. So used to it that she doesn't realize when he doesn't speak. She just heats him think. "I was thinking I'd like to order in. I've got more work to do on this and it's going to be fairly tedious and I am getting really hungry."
There's some good options around here too but maybe he'll have Indian sent in. Or… Chinese. Mmmm. Or maybe both. Ah the joys of delivery.
"Oh …." Jemma sighs. Too used to it, it seems. Perhaps they should try to disconnect soon - before it becomes too much of a habit.
"Well, why don't you do that. I've got a meeting to get to which I expect will take a couple of hours." Probably squints reviewing the latest information on a project. Utterly fascinating for Jemma and boring for most other people.
"I'll see you when I get back, alright?" And no, Jemma hasn't eaten yet. She's forgotten.
"Jemma…" Jeriah glares at her. "You haven't had lunch. And your meeting isn't for at least forty five minutes." He points to a chair. She's not getting away with that. Granted she wasn't trying to get away with anything but when she doesn't eat she gets even more scatterbrained than usual.
And then she starts talking to the hologrpraphic cat.