Summary:Domino, a hellcat, and Project programming duke it out while Posse tries to figure out WTF is going on. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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After the mission to shut down the Cyberian had ended and the RESCUE crew boarded their ride home there had been one more surprise in store. Almost as soon as the exits were sealed the sensor on Domino's ankle lit up like crazy to indicate hellcat possession. Roni had been immediately singled out as a target, then the neuro darts had found their mark.
The rest of the flight had been peaceful enough with the albino and her peculiar occupant sleeping it off.
Back at campus the situation has been ..peculiar. Isolated from the rest of the facility the -clearly- still possessed albino has been oddly peaceful, napping a lot and making actual sounds of purrs. Getting food and water has been complication-free. In fact, surveillance would show that she's been avoiding getting too close to the exit. It's been completely different from previous encounters with the demonic critter.
*
And that's exactly what's drawn the Chief of Security's attention.
The room's only door glides open along its fine bearings and a lone humblebee floats in to join the cat-possessed albino, leaving the exit to close just as smoothly behind it. The floating metal insect stares at the infernal woman - can it even blink? - and studies her peaceably.
*
It's quite a bizarre mix of human and feline. On the outside it still looks and sounds like Neena Thurman. On the inside it's drastically different, the brain wired for a creature not even of this dimension. There's still an intelligent glint in those hematite-sheened eyes (and they do still blink.) The fangs may have grown a small amount. But the posture, the motions and body language are just so -off.- It's to the point where it could trigger a xenophobic response out of some people.
When the humblebee comes in to take a look the albino lazily lifts up her head to stare at the peculiar yet familiar looking device, her head tilting some in curiosity then mouth opening enough for a momentary chattering sound to come forth.
The humblebee is watched but the possessed patient doesn't seem inclined to do anything more than keep a casual eye on it.
*
That's all the attention the drone seems to need as it turns to hover near a wall and a beam projects out its back, painting an image of Posse on the matte surface.
Out of her armor and now dressed in her REACT uniform, the green-eyed woman takes a moment to orient herself with the drone's vision then turns her head to look towards Neena. "Hey cat. You comfy in there?" she asks dryly.
*
Any transformation is puzzling. In this instance it's the humblebee projecting an image both familiar yet not. Neenacat sits upright and places hands against the edge of the bed, ducking her head to stretch out with a visible shake. Then it's all eyes on the image of Posse with Dom's head again tilting slightly in confusion.
She gets up and stalks closer, arms held somewhat more tense as if preparing for unarmed defense as she attempts to smell it. A hand comes up to pass through it once. Twice. Then she snorts lightly and turns around, wandering right back to her cozy spot on the bed to resume watching.
Verbal communication may be one sided here but there is something in there to work off of.
*
"It's called a projection, Spot knows all about it," Posse replies as she watches the cat study her with none of the understanding that would have come so naturally to Neena. There's little to be learned from the cyborg's body language; rigid stances are such second nature to the well-drilled woman it's hard to interpret anything as directed at the hellcat.
"Do you understand English? Can you speak?"
*
The albino blinks once then parts her maw, perhaps working through the words being spoken to make sense of the request. Then she stands fully upright and closes her eyes.
Two seconds and nothing happens. Then her entire body goes tense like something had just stabbed her in the back, eyes pinched closed and mouth opening wide in a snarl both human and something else. Hands go to her head, fingernails biting enough to scratch the skin..fortunately not too much.
Another grunt from deep within the ribs and the pale figure straightens, eyes opening to stare right through the projection of Ava. Like she's trying to see something which exists only to her within the span of a pinpoint inside of the wall.
The voice which speaks isn't entirely her own, coming out as harsh and ragged in tone yet perfectly robotic in modulation. "Subject Seven. Tantalus. Seven. Charlie. Whiskey. Romeo. India. Dulcimer. Priority one recall. Two five point five niner zero niner six. Negative eight zero point eight niner zero zero niner."
As soon as the string of code is spoken she falls back into the bed and curls into a ball, hands once again clutching her head with a scream. A moment later she's silent, still. When she lifts her head and looks around to see the projection it looks like Neena is at the helm again.
"Av. Goddammit what's going on?" she asks while quickly standing and moving closer to the door. "Let me out."
*
It's a hard sight to watch from the other side of a camera and the one thing that makes Ava question if, maybe, she should have shown up in person. At least it's over quickly.
"Yeah not happening, Spot. You've been cat'ed up for 22 hours since the flight back," Posse informs flatly. "Even by cat standards you went weird and I think we've got something to talk about."
*
A forced breath escapes Neena in the form of a twisted chuckle, the edges of her lips curling upward into a smile as she regards the projection. "Meow. Now c'mon. We can talk it out over some beers late—rrh."
Vertigo cuts in, one hand to her forehead and the other slapping out against the door as she wilts. "Head's fuckin' killin' me," she grunts. "Look, Av. Just open the door. This hasn't gotten any more fun since the last three times we've done it."
*
The humblebee turns and orbits the albino to keep her in view as she moves, in the process throwing Ava's projection onto another wall as the cyborg sighs quietly then shuts her eyes.
"Subject 7 Tantalus 7 C-W-R-I-Dulcimer," she recites flatly then opens her green eyes again. "Any of that sound familiar?"
*
Within the initial span of time Domino is collecting herself and eyeing the door and surrounding territory. Ava doesn't need to know albino specifically to realize what she's trying to do.
Having most of the command line recited does cause a very brief pause but as soon as Ava starts abbreviating most of the words the moment is lost. She blinks then gives the projected chief of security a strange look. "No. Should it?"
Attention going right back to the door, she goes to push it open then thumps a fist against it. Then again, harder. "Open the -fucking- door, Posse."
*
"Spot use your head for a moment and suck it the fuck up," Ava replies over the clanging of the metal door in a voice that's firm with command. "You're in there for a damn better reason than tackling people this time. The little room's messin' with you, I got that. Now back away from the door and I'll bring ya a drink. We can talk this through in person. You trackin?"
*
Neena is just starting to -kick- the door when something causes her to falter and slip up. Rather than simply falling to the floor there's a fairly incredible twisting about which lets her stick the landing in the last instant just like a cat landing on all fours. Another headshake and an irritated chuff passes, then she gets up and goes to take a seat on the edge of the bed. -Exactly- where she had been before.
There's something of a wild glint in her eyes but at the same time something seems to be keeping her in check. Ava's projection gets a brief glance, the conflicted albino almost seeming to ask 'see what I have to work with?'
*
The change of ownership isn't hard to spot and once she realizes what's happened Ava huffs through her nose and folds her arms. "Point made. That was a lot calmer than going in the other direction."
"She wants out for a bad reason and you're happy to keep her where she's not causing trouble, that about right?" the cyborg summarizes.
*
Continuing the bizarre trend, the sitting Neena stares back to Posse's image and makes an "Owr" sound to answer her question. That 'said' she curls back up on the bed and resumes a low, idle human-but-not purr while continuing to watch the strange silly humblebee and its own curious passenger.
Dom's openly a cat person. Maybe the action is soothing to her while lost to that recall command.
*
Posse just stares, evidently not as fluent in cat, then shakes her head ruefully. "Roger. I'll be there in a mike…" And a few seconds later the humblebee projection shuts off, leaving the drone to drift to an out of the way corner of the room.
True to her word and scarcely more than sixty seconds the room's door opens again to admit Ava in her same uniform and carrying a Solo cup. Just like in the hologram the cyborg really is dressed only in her uniform. There's no pistols, no drop holsters, not even a duty belt. While the bionic woman might not have empty pockets she looks convincingly unarmed - probably to reduce the tools a lucky escape artist could swipe.
*
In those sixty seconds and change the albino does not move from her spot. Only after Ava's fully inside of the room and the door is closed does control get relinquished to the body's proper owner..somewhat..and it returns with a pained groan. "Really startin' to hate that cat…"
Neena's already taken a trip through the air vents on campus. She's full of tricks and deception -and- a power which can circumvent most security measures outright. This is definitely the time to be cautious.
Fingers curl into the bedding and grip tightly before she sits up once again, her new expression hardened but worn out along the edges.
"My handle of this situation is ..fleeting. You have ..no idea.. how badly I want to drive your head into the wall and bolt for the exit..and that thought ain't comin' from me."
*
Ava accepts the warning calmly. She already knows. "It ain't coming from your cat either. Something happened that put a bug in your head. Maybe some freaky MKULTRA sierra. Good news is I think we found your trigger phrase."
Walking over fearlessly but with an attentive eye on the albino, Ava offers the cup filled with a generous portion of hard liquor. Naturally it's rum. Once accepted she backs away again and takes a seat further down the bed. "Don't worry too much 'bout a tic. That door ain't opening no matter what you try on me and we've got defense in depth."
*
Neena gently rubs at a temple while hearing what the cyborg has to say. Her own voice isn't quite right, still showing evidence of that hellcat 'taint.'
"I'd say you're full of bravo sierra but something is soooo not right. This is kind of a team effort here, like there's something trying to get me running somewhere while something else is keeping me anchored. It's — rrrgh — ever feel like something was playing Rock 'Em Sock 'Em with your grey matter?"
Suddenly: Cup. Cup that's Filled With RUM. Dom looks fairly blank at first as she reaches for it and gives it an experimental sniff. This time the transformation in her eyes has nothing to do with possession. It's a bit more like a junkie getting a much needed fix. "Oh you are just fucking -awesome.-"
One long hearty drink later and the weary mercenary passes Posse another look. "We find ourselves in these situations way too goddamn much. Now I am -this-" she pinches thumb and finger together "close to crawling into 'I don't want to talk about it' territory because this is -really- fucking embarrassing, but I also kinda want to get the hell out of this room. So. What now?"
*
Ava's eyes warm at the albino's enthusiasm. Who knows how long it'll last, but it's good to have her back. "Now we figure out how to shut that running voice up and unplug it," she answers. "Because if you get out you're going straight for Florida. I've got the trigger phrase and the command is unencrypted: 'priority one recall' with GPS coords."
"Talk to me, Spot," the bionic woman bids as she rests her elbows on her knees while looking over. "If you start feelin weird or anything jogs your memory let me know. Trackin'?"
*
Neena hunches forward with elbows on knees and the plastic booze cup held between both hands, struggling to comprehend what Posse is telling her. "They didn't…" she starts in, frowning as her gaze drifts away. "Oh, no. Oh -fuck- no. That— Goooood," she groans while slowly rolling back to thunk her head against the wall. "Those pieces of -shit- figured it out.
It's a small miracle that she doesn't spill any of The Good Stuff while slinging out a few more seething curses.
"'Priority one recall' means 'drop everything and return to base, any means necessary.' If they got one rooted then there's going to be more. I don't …" she sighs then quickly blinks, looking anywhere that isn't near Ava.
"This is a level of compromised there may not be any bouncing back from."
A moment is required to collect herself, gently setting the cup on the floor. "Where did this come from? Who knew about it? I don't talk in my sleep."
*
The green-eyed vet looks over sympathetically and calls out with just enough command to draw Neena's attention back to her. "Spot, eyes up. We work with a guy who can regrow an entire human limb. Getting you unfucked is about as hard as putting Roni in a dress. We just need the right outside help."
"It must have happened during the raid. Your cat took over on the flight and she keeps taking control when you get wanderlust. That's defense layer one, so don't worry so much that you'll actually escape. That demon thing is stronger than your fucked up speak n' spell brainwashing. And it parroted that back to me a few minutes ago so turns out it can talk… kind of."
"Take another sip, relax. If being /possessed by a demon/ didn't boot you this is no big thing," Ava reassures. "Now, do you know any other commands that might mean 'off' or 'cancel'?"
*
It's one of those rare times where a familiar voice gone firm is what the albino needs to hear. An injured pride is one thing but a key element which they both share is an ability to focus on a mission. Even if that mission now happens to be her.
Posse gets proper eye contact..but not for too long. In another second Neena's barely containing a sudden bout of laughter, turning away and hiding her face in a palm. "I'm sorry, just… Keep going."
That hand slides up to run fingers through the shorter cut of otherwise tangled black hair. "Usually I have some idea of what that darn cat's up to but the last few hours have been more of a blackout." She thinks, smirks faintly, and looks to Posse when saying "It's moments like this where you really have to wonder if all of these events are connected for a reason. Something I picked up from a trinket in an other dimensional -Hell- is all that's keeping me together today."
The next round of instructions sees the cup back in her hand as she scoots back enough to comfortably lean against the wall, letting her head rest back for a while. "It's all subconscious. I couldn't tell you. The recall order's familiar because it was also a command. Which..means there's probably some for kill orders and scorched earth lurking in there, too."
*
"You gotta admit your life's fucked up," Ava prods with a sardonic grin. "No wonder you go by Domino. Though really you might want to think about a disguise so you're not instantly recognized by anyone looking to hack your brain."
"I can put the word out to Hunter on finding a telepath who can help - hush-hush, 'course. Besides setting you up with some nice furniture and some in-flight entertainment, got any ideas?"
*
Both eyebrows go up as the albino gently bobs her head. "Nearly beyond all recognition," she adds. "My goal is to get there by twenty-twenty two." A lopsided smile follows as she takes another long drink, eyes closing as she leans back and lets the familiar sensation of a large amount of rum on an empty stomach wash over her.
"I'm more concerned that someone else connected to the Project was on the loose, and that they -had- that information. Triggers like that are..WERE..-supposed- to be top command only."
It's a matter for another day, perhaps.
The idea of working with a telepath clearly doesn't sit well with her, but..what other options are there? "Keep me disconnected. Zero possibility for outside contact. Nothing which could be used to bypass your security, nothing that could be used as a weap..crud, that eliminates just about everything."
She looks down at the amber fluid still remaining then gently shakes her head. "Other than jacking up my internal warden on industrial strength catnip to stave off some boredom, I've got nothing."
*
"Please you're not that bad," Ava chuckles softly, appraising the albino with a bit of a grin. "I won't spoil all our security but you can have metal cutlery. Me and the troops aren't prison guard pussies, besides we've got gear and at least one of us could take you apart like a Mr. Potato Head if she had to."
Sitting up straight again, the tawny vet reaches into one of her pockets and pulls something out. "Since you mentioned it, I do want to test something…" And that something is a little spice jar with shredded greenish contents. Ava smiles shamelessly and gives the bottle a little shake. "Want to try it out?"
*
Neena offers a small grin in return, teasing "Just give it time."
Metal cutlery, for real? Posse sure must be confident in their abilities around here. "You -do- remember that I was made to be a metahuman assassin, right?" she reminds Ava with a meaningful look. "But if you're willing to roll that far, I'm down with it."
While Posse shifts around Dom downs even more of the rum. She's going to be in a happy place real soon. Doubly so when Ava mentions wanting to 'test something' and brings out a small container which first has the albino's nostrils flaring slightly -then- has her staring at the vet saying "You didn't…"
Oh, but she did. Today both the mercenary and her pet hellcat are going to be in their happy places for a nice long while.
*