2020-02-02 - Blue Skies, shining on me...

Summary:

Thea takes a job as 'River' for a lark, and meets up with Stark

Log Info:

Storyteller: None
Date: Sun Feb 2 04:16:15 2020
Location: Stark's executive office

Related Logs

None

Theme Song

None

tony-starkthea

AC/DC is playing on the sound system, and Tony is in his cups. He heard that some people had been referring to "the real-life Archer Sterling," and he pondered the realistic concept of a mass firing.
He wouldn't do that, but the concept WAS tempting.
A lot had happened during his little hiatus, but he was back in town and New York City never looked so good.
He was currently wearing sweat pants, running shoes, and this t-shirt: https://www.teeshirtpalace.com/products/stand-back-i-m-going-to-try-science-t-shirt with the arc reactor in his chest giving the head an odd blue halo.

Thea wasn't sure just how serious to take the job, but it sounded like fun to try. When she succeeded, she could decide /then/ if she actually wants to turn over the files. She's made her way into the building, and had taken the stairs up to a point. It had been easy enough to blend in, just another workaholic, as she moved into the elevator, with some completely blank files tucked into her arm.

Deep red hair is pulled back from her face with a single silver bar just at the back of her head. Silver hoops, a navy button up blouse tucked into black slacks, her boots just visible, black with a sensible heel. There are dark framed glasses that have no prescription in the lenses, don't hide the eyes tinted brown with contacts. There is nothing remotely flashy or sexy about her look at the moment, right on down to the little plastic card on a retractable holder at her belt loop. Thea is doing her best worker bee impersontion, right down to using her makeup to downplay her natural features to be a little more average looking among the city's population.

It's only when she reaches the executive floor, that she feels that tick up in her pulse, that faint rush of the hunt - a pale comparison to the real sort of hunt she's done, but enough to make her almost smile with those natural mauve hued lips.

Tony Stark had been out of the country on some sabbatical. It had been considered odd, but while the cat's away, the mice will play/get sloppy. Burqhart had been specific - the files for Blue Skies on the main computer. He had them saved on a personal hard drive, so the network wouldn't have access to it.
The office was accessible by three known avenues - the front door (maglocked, fingerprint scanner), the vents (laser alarm barriers, dust from an infamous drinker) or the balcony (watched like a hawk via CCTV).

Decisions, decisions, decisions…

For someone like Thea? That decision is easy. An ocular key would have been interesting to try, but a fingerprint scanner? Child's play. There's a light powdered aerosol spray misted over that scanner - to outline the most recent scans, and the placement of a finger overlaying that without touching it to confuse the lines - but she can raise her body heat output so it will read the heat with the lines as if it's a real fingerprint being read.

Once that lock clicks, she will put down the dummy folders, and slip inside the office with a very quiet tread. The music is a sign she is not alone - maybe Stark's return really was more than a rumor. Still, she's not going to just rabbit off like a scared little girl, this is still nothing terribly daunting - yet. She will move with that quick, quiet stride, feeling with her powers to see just what - and who- she might be dealing with.

The office was empty, and everything was in its place. The liquor cabinet was open, and Stark himself was there, passed out on the Murphy bed, a half-empty tumbler on the side table. He snores, apparently. It's muted, but it's there. He was flat on his back, still fully-clothed, arms spread wide.

It had to be a trick of the light that Tony looked a little younger than he usually did.

It need not be a trick of the light - many people look younger and more vulnerable when asleep. Thea, on the other hand, is wary of tricks - she will reach out with her powers to make sure Tony is actually asleep. No need to have the billionaire playboy waking up when she's not sure she's not going to hand over files. She will do another sweep with her eyes and powers before she moves in further.

She will walk over to the desk, pulling a particular USB stick from her pocket. She's not a hacker, though she's tech savvy enough. But she has friends and contacts who are - and that gives her tools for her trade. She should be able to get the files easy and quickly enough - even as she casts her eyes around again.

Tony is giving off all the hallmarks of moderate-to-deep sleep. Even his heart rate is slowed perceptibly and his body temp is lowered, but his brain activity is…odd. Maybe it's the high IQ, but his brain seems rather…busy.

Throughout the entire time Thea has been in the office, Tony hasn't moved a muscle.
The files aren't too difficult to find, but the folder is encrypted. It is asking for a password.

Thea will actually move some chemicals around, to help calm Tony's brain down. She will try to lull him into real, restorative sleep - versus the more shallow sleep alcohol can induce. She isn't interested in hurting the man after all, in fact, she's trying to keep him from a hangover.

There's a sigh, as she plugs in the log chip USB - it will start running through possible passwords - in a program marvel Thea can't even explain, let alone understand and recreate herself.

The USB stick software says it will take some time, about five minutes. Which doesn't seem bad.
Except when she detects a new chemical suddenly being introduced into Tony's bloodstream, as if he had just been injected with something. It was waking up his brain, speeding his heart rate, raising his body temp, even as he lay back, still snoring, eyes still closed.

Thea just sits back in the chair, looking around at the bookshelves. Only when Tony's biosigns change, does her attention swing back to him. She ponders, just for a moment, how hard she wants to push. She could use force and keep him under, or she could just sit back and find out exactly what he was up to.

Of course, he might just get angry and have her arrested. Or he may find it amusing, provided she doesn't try to take the files. She is a member of SHIELD after all, he may believe her if she says she did it for a lark. At any rate, she'll take her hair down, and undo a couple buttons of her blouse. The glasses come off, tucked away in a pocket.

Without opening his eyes, Tony says, "You knew I was waking up before I showed any outward sign. How?"
Then his eyes opened, and he sat up on the Murphy bed, looking intently at Thea. "And who did you take the job from?"

"Ancient Chinese secret." Thea says, teasing tone with a straight face. She will rise from his desk chair, wandering towards the Murphy bed with a hint of a swagger. "I'm a SHIELD agent - you know they teach us all kinds of tricks, don't you?"

She will stop a few feet away, a loose stance. She looks relaxed, hands in her pockets. "You do realize I don't work in real names, right? It's a lot less messy. They only know me as River, and I assign them a random name."

Tony smiles, then reaches for his half-empty glass. "Well, then you probably went through Burqhardt. And if you're SHIELD, maybe I can make you a better offer. How would you like to work for me?"

There is a lift of her eyebrows as she watches him reach for that glass. "My question is, what was the wake up shot, and how did it get triggered? I could have tried to keep you under, but you would have had a hell of a headache later, and I wasn't feeling cruel."

She will move to sit in a chair after she pulls it closer to the bed. "Work for you? Interesting counter offer. I'm listening."

Tony grinned, lifting the hand wearing the expensive Rolex. "Hot dose in the back of the watch. Triggered when someone accessed the computer." He takes a sip of his drink. "You see, I tend to deal with a LOT of different issues, all to be handled in different ways. I need fixers. Problem-solvers of all types. The more they can handle certain things, the less I have to worry about hauling out the big guns." He points to the computer. "'Blue Skies' is an old medical name for a placebo. What you WILL get to download is the list of what benefits you can get working for me. Starting salary of 100k a year, with a raise in three months, guaranteed."

There's a tip of her head, a glance at the watch. "You could just get better scanning tech - occular scanner, something, on the front door on the way in here. Though it's a nice backup for a backup." She shrugs.

A hand pushes up through her hair, as she looks at him. "And just what sort of problem solver it is you think I am, Stark?"

Stark sips his drink again. "I need innovators. People who can improvise, think outside the box. See threats where no one would bother looking." Stark grins. "I need someone who can get in and out without anyone know what happened until it was all over."

There's a quick point of a finger. "But you did wake up and catch me. So why would you offer me a job? Sure, I could have kept you under, but.. like I said, it would have been cruel. Truth is? I took the job for a lark. I've been a little too bored lately. Needed to do something different than the usual day to day."

Tony grinned. "This job was your interview. As the CEO, I tend to uphold my OWN methods for hiring and firing apart from HR. And I was waiting to see how you'd handle it." He winks. "Unorthodox, but that's how I roll."

"So you set me up, to take the job from Mr. Green, to see what I would do? Risky, especially if you haven't read my file." Thea says, seeming completely unruffled. "I'm hardly what someone would call run of the mill, myself." Hands fold in her lap, her chin lifting.

Tony snorts. "I don't WANT run-of-the-mill, River. Run-of-the-mill gets hired through LinkedIn. I need a specialist in their field who can back up style with skill." He looks to Thea. "Do I have that person standing here with me?"

"You do know my real name isn't River." Thea says, sounding mildly amused. "I'm on Linked in." Admittedly she is - as a freelance interpreter. "I'm an interpreter, too. Freelance." She shrugs. "Metaphorically speaking, I suppose I could be considered standing with you. It should likely be an interesting change of pace, if nothing else."

The computer beeps. "All right. Take the jump drive, it'll have all the details. If you accept, all you have to do is electronically sign all the documents." He stands up. "I hope the terms are agreeable with you. Excellence will be rewarded. Mediocrity will be kicked to the curb."

Thea will linger another moment, just looking at him with a hint of curiousity to her features. "It must have been an interesting sabbatical, if you've come back looking to hire people of … interesting talents." She will rise easily, walking with a sway to the desk to retrieve the USB.

Tony shrugged. "Boring is for other people. I'm not other people." He finishes his drink, than stretches. "Time to get some REAL sleep. You can take the elevator down, security's been instructed not to mess with you. If any of them do, and it's provable…feel free to demonstrate your skills on them."

Thea will slide the usb into her pocket. She will nudge his mind with the proper chemicals to help him fall asleep easily. "Which set of skills, is the question?" She will tease him as she heads out the door with an amused little laugh.

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