The Rising: Exaltation RP/IC/OPEN

by **Verkaria** » Mon Oct 20, 2014 6:04 pm

Jace Blauschwert
Shanghai Pudong Airport, Shanghai, China

Jace Blauschwert shook the hand of the man that he considered to be a friend among the rest of his comrades.

"It is good to see you, too, Dr. Frankenstein," Jace said with his own knowing smile while he shook the good doctor's hand. Jace then let go and stepped back into the initial group before saying, "Yes, if there is nothing else to be said here, then let's go."

by **Mincaldenteans** » Mon Oct 20, 2014 6:27 pm

Gamma

Her smile didn't fade but her eyes changed in perception and her demeanor was a subtle shift. Genevieve? What kind of name was that? "Gamma will do Mr. Dahlin; pet names are for pawns," she smiled sweetly and moved off to join her siblings. Omega had perked an eyebrow but said nothing, then again the agent was even less with words than Phi - if such a thing was possible.

The group made their way to the limo, the luxurious vehicle was more than spacious to accommodate them all and Gamma made sure to keep her brethren this time around rather than charming her way to the human side. It must be the name, she finally thought, that irked her. Why else would she react in such a manner. Genevieve. Ridiculous.

The doors slid shut once Omega got in, the last of them to enter before he barked a few short orders to the rest that were to be part of their convoy. One armored SUV in the front, one in the back and as they traveled would be passed by or pass along a few bike riders that were eyes and ears toward any threat that thought to stop them. The limo pulled out after the SUV and Gamma looked out in the busy thoroughfare that was Shanghai.

"I suppose you've given some thought to your newest position with the Circle, Mr. Dahlman. While I was mildly surprised to surmise your affiliation to Mr. Blauschwert, your reputation alone precedes you and we have uses for such a man of your talents," Gamma said, breaking the silence after five minutes into the traffic. She hadn't locked eyes with him yet, content to glance at his file with all the (apparently not updated or accurate as usual) information she had been given. Either Jace never said anything, the Circle had kept it quiet, or it was a combination of both. A mark of annoyance that Gamma was willing to let go. For now.

Placing the file down by Delta, Gamma crossed her legs and laid her hands upon her left knee. "But what my superiors would like to know is: what exactly do you have to offer us? You've caught their attention, now give us a reason to keep it."

by **Verkaria** » Mon Oct 20, 2014 6:56 pm

Jace Blauschwert
Shanghai, China

Jace Blauschwert stepped into the limo along with everyone else and took a window seat to enjoy or, depending on what he say, disdain the view. As he stepped through the doorway of the vehicle, Jace thought about the Middle Eastern idea that the last one to enter and exit a doorway was seen as the one who demanded the most respect or was the most important. That being said, Jace was one of the first people to enter the vehicle. After all, he wanted a good seat. Tactics.

Jace settled down and listened to Genevi- Gamma speak to the good doctor. Blauschwert was surprised to see Gamma actually deem Dahlin with a response. From what Jace had seen of the Agents, responding to these kinds of remarks and jokes appeared below them in their minds. The revolutionary wondered if he could get her to respond more.

"While I was mildly surprised to surmise your affiliation to Mr. Blauschwert," Gamma said.

When Gamma paused in her speech, Jace responded to this particular piece of conversation and said under his breath, but loud enough for the limo-lovers to hear, "It seems that quite a lot of people are declaring their affiliation to me these days."

by **Lenciland** » Mon Oct 20, 2014 7:40 pm

S20 Freeway, Shanghai, China
Dahlin, slightly affronted by the confidence of this agent, Gamma, muttered,"I called you Genevieve because the damn PRC has terminals bugged," as he stepped into the limo, but he was pleased to see that he had received a human response from one of the agents. Perhaps they all degraded over time or perhaps Gamma had more access to her emotions than she thought.

"It's great to see you again Blauschwert," Dahlin said relishing the not so obvious exasperations of Gamma as she was made to wait," I've heard of your activities and I must say, I'm quite impressed, and you seem to have adapted fairly well to the augmentation that we gave you in Sweden. I hope that you are doing well?"

"It seems that quite a lot of people are declaring their affiliation to me these days,"Blauschwert muttered as Gamma asked about his relationship with Jace.

"I don't have an affiliation with Blauschwert, we're friends. The only Circle related activities that I've ever engaged in with Blauschwert were his surgeries. Outside of that we were merely friends who met in extraordinary circumstances. But back to the topic at hand," Dahlin said with a sigh," I have control of a large multi-national corporation in one of the most influential fields in the world of late. Abiogenesis is one of, if not the only, bio-tech corporation powerful enough to challenge AltLife, a well known Fringe-supporting corporation. I also have more, well, nefarious assets. I know that Jace will oppose this to the end, but it may be necessary before this fight is over. We are, rather you are, facing massive resistance from some minorities in you areas. As such, I have taken the liberty of creating gene-specific, time-based viruses that will painlessly end the lives of certain minorities in, say, Iran, or maybe even Mexico. These viruses will become benign after a set amount of days thus making them the perfect weapons for permanent unrest quelling. It's not pretty and I regret it, but it may become necessary. Of course, that is the last resort. I have many other projects going on, but perhaps the most important reasons are my expansion into the Asian bio-tech markets, and my collecting of political power in North Europe. I already have the Agrarian Party of Sweden in my pocket and with some pushing I can have some parties in Germany and other places."

by **Nexeria** » Mon Oct 20, 2014 8:39 pm

Marcus Cavor
Shanghai, China

Marcus, sitting in the far back section of the limo simply listening to everyone, leaned forward planting the bottom of his cane into the extravagant rug laid across limo's floor before saying, "Forgive me for interrupting, Mr. Dahlin, but I feel I must ask a few questions. You see, I am a man of many talents and most of my talents usually involve gushy red stuff pouring out of people's bodies, so I was wondering what exactly am I doing here? I mean if this was a simple meet and greet between you and members of the Circle, they probably wouldn't ask me to come."

Scanning over the agents assuming they would have the answers, Marcus continued, "I can only assume that Mr. Dahlin has many people that want to kill him and as much security as he already has it seems odd that he would need someone like me to protect him, unless, of course, it is not extra protection he seeks, but instead the removal of an apposing threat. Not necessarily a physical threat, but more like a financial one, and if that truly is the case, I would be happy to assist Mr. Dahlin in the removal of said threat."

"Of course, I may be entirely wrong and the Circle higher-ups just decided to send me on a company retreat with you fine lot, and if that's it then I think I'll be visiting the Oriental Pearl Tower before our a departure from this beautiful city. Now, if anyone would care to feel me in on why I'm here, I'd be more than happy to hear it." Marcus finished, leaning back into his leather seat, as he eyed over the stunning streets of Shanghai.

by **Mincaldenteans** » Mon Oct 20, 2014 9:27 pm

Gamma

Gamma could only tilt her head and shoot an unwelcoming glare upon one of their oldest members. Well, old being operative on the lifespan one manage to have in the Circle... nonetheless. The same stare shifted toward Phi, Delta, and Omega, though none of the annoyance conveyed in the small compartment reached them as it was only meant for Marcus alone.

She held a finger up and spoke, "1) AltLife is not Fringe supporting company, was never one and will never be one in the future. It's secrets and dealings were exposed at the attack on the headquarters by us because it was one of the primary targets (Nemora's compound the second) due to Nemora's personal betrayal after having pledged herself and her company to us. 2) It goes without saying that the company lost face and profits, its employees died in the attack at their headquarters and all other employment contracts terminated in one of its many branch divisions across the globe. 3) It is not longer an industry giant, but it was legendary at its height because no other pharmaceutical or bio-medical research company could match it thanks to Nemora herself. That being said the woman herself escaped, much to our regret."

Gamma smiled, though it was hardly a friendly overture, "You could say it was us that did you people a favor by opening the market. Your endeavors are well noted Mr. Dahlman, but I didn't ask what you had to offer and what you've accomplished. I asked why should we keep you?"

The smile showed teeth this time, her hands laid open and the bump the car rolled over hardly moved her if but a slight sway of her body and head. The stare remained the same and the small space got very still and very quiet. A similar test was given to Jace and Marcus in the past and this moment wasn't for them to have their turn. They passed, few ever managed to, and those that failed were accepted but given a more... predictable (and expendable) role in the Circle. "You're no fool, Mr. Dahlman and sprouting your many projects to us is hardly an indicator of a powerful man. The Circle can do all that and in time we will succeed but if you're going to join us like my superiors think you capable of doing, you're going to have to give me an answer germane to their judgment."

by **Walabam** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 7:15 am

Jolene Hsieh

The way that Jolene and the others had dressed were worlds apart, but that didn't matter to her. She thought, that as long as her makeup and hair were alright, the other factors did not matter. Grinning from ear to ear, Jolene nodded at the lady whom had introduced herself as 'Victoria Grayson', acknowledging her presence. "Pleasure to meet you, too, Victoria." Jolene's main aspiration here, of course, wasn't to make BFFs. This was, however, a chance to get to know her future colleagues better, to prevent unnecessary friction between her and the others. Chemistry was an important factor in working together as a team, just as what Jolene wanted.

Soon, after the formalities, Jolene sat herself down on the seat next to Victoria. It was kind of awkward for her because she didn't know if Victoria was okay with her sitting beside. If she was okay with it, it would have been rude for Jolene to sit further from her. If she wasn't, however, Jolene would have had made a new 'enemy'.

It was before long that more people had entered the conference room. Jolene seemed quite surprised about the number of women that had entered the room. In Taiwan, her home country, a female had to work extra hard to get recognized, discriminated against by the majority of male Police Officers. "I'm Alexandra Bø, nice to meet you," uttered a woman towards Victoria whom had just sat herself down on her right. Jolene turned towards the source of the voice, only to see yet another formally dressed woman. Alexandra soon offered her hand to Jolene, which Jolene happily shook. "Hello there. I'm Jolene Hsieh, Agent of the Criminal Investigation Bureau of Taiwan's National Police Agency. Nice meeting you, Alexandra." Jolene was yet again all smiles as she introduced herself.

by **Jessjohnesik** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 10:19 am

Delta let Gamma question the newcomer. She knew that this was far from necessary but was clearly deemed valuable to express Dahlin's need for the Circle, not the Circle's need for Dahlin. It would hopefully instill a good message into his mind. Gamma was doing everything right, all in all. Phi didn't bother to disrupt the conversation, as always, while Omega clearly didn't feel, nor did he quite have, the need to take part in it.

Watching Shanghai and admiring the modern architecture yet also intensely listening to Gamma and Dahlin's conversation, Delta started to notice their first target location: the Shanghai Tower. It was a rather immense building, though there were about eleven taller by now. But it was still admirable, considering it was the second tallest building once. But Delta didn't quite understand why would this be considered so admirable if it never was the first. She understood this simple idea only so much. Was she human?

Snapping herself at the thought, Delta saw the limousine was only about five minutes from the building.

"We're only five minutes away." She'd boldly state, not caring whom she interrupted.

by **Cyzawza** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 10:23 am

Chedastan wrote:Nathan looked at Gerard and William, he had been pretty much as ready as one can, he had been of course checking his equipment before hand. "Yeah, I'm good to go." He responded to them. Nathan of course had little to no worry that William was competent for what they were going to be doing shortly, if he wasn't, he probably wouldn't had been team leader then. Nathan then quickly went over a rough idea of what's probably going to happened on their mission in his head, just to be sure he got it right, which he did of course, because this seemed pretty straight forward as far as extracting is concern. But then Nathan reminded himself of Briggs, who could easily end up complicating things depending on just whatever happens when they get there. All Nathan could really hope for is that shit doesn't hit the fan, or at least not as bad.

Gerard knew that Nathan was barely an acquaintance at this point, but he knew all too much of the struggles Nathan had mentioned prior, it was hard not to try to offer help as he had done many times before. He knew that the Fringe had read each of the soldiers here today like a book before selecting them, so he was confident Nathan's trauma would not be a threat to the mission here today. Nathan would be able to sort out his own problems, on the battlefield.

As Nathan certified his readiness, Gerard said back to the Captain, "So it appears we are both ready. Again, call the word and I will be up, Captain."

by **Jessjohnesik** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 11:29 am

Letting Alice go at her brain cells for at least a small span of time, Karla could understand the girl's boredom. In fact, Svendsen was tired of waiting and bored herself, despite having done so for only about fifteen minutes. She could only pass the time by acknowledging some of the people present, Alice whining like a little child in the background of her thoughts. The first thing Karla could note was that more than half of the people present were female. Not that it was surprising, men were more likely to join the SOCPU units and in this decade women were as employed as men hence the higher amount of females in various jobs, including the various, including current, FD teams and positions. The sudden knowledge of demographics made Karla shudder and the knowledge of what SOCPU stood for made her sincerely sad. However she understood that her enduring all of these horrors of formality among other things was the right thing to do in the end. Although It being enforced on Karla and her petite companion likely also played a role.

In any case, the conference would start any second now and a suited man was rechecking the set up of the presentation on his computer.

"Alice, calm the fuck down. It's going to start soon." Karla told Miss Van Houten in a more serious than usual voice.

by **Phoenix2012** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 11:46 am

Cyzawza wrote:
Chedastan wrote:Nathan looked at Gerard and William, he had been pretty much as ready as one can, he had been of course checking his equipment before hand. "Yeah, I'm good to go." He responded to them. Nathan of course had little to no worry that William was competent for what they were going to be doing shortly, if he wasn't, he probably wouldn't had been team leader then. Nathan then quickly went over a rough idea of what's probably going to happened on their mission in his head, just to be sure he got it right, which he did of course, because this seemed pretty straight forward as far as extracting is concern. But then Nathan reminded himself of Briggs, who could easily end up complicating things depending on just whatever happens when they get there. All Nathan could really hope for is that shit doesn't hit the fan, or at least not as bad.

Gerard knew that Nathan was barely an acquaintance at this point, but he knew all too much of the struggles Nathan had mentioned prior, it was hard not to try to offer help as he had done many times before. He knew that the Fringe had read each of the soldiers here today like a book before selecting them, so he was confident Nathan's trauma would not be a threat to the mission here today. Nathan would be able to sort out his own problems, on the battlefield.

As Nathan certified his readiness, Gerard said back to the Captain, "So it appears we are both ready. Again, call the word and I will be up, Captain."

William nodded, satisfied that they were ready.
"Good. I'll check the others and then we can head out."
As he turned to leave, he added,
"Oh, and you can call me Will, or William. Hell, you can call me a bloody bastard if you want, just cut the 'Captain' crap out. We all know that ranks are bullshit these days anyways. Really, I've never liked the formality everyone tries to impose on each other. If you need anything, just holler."
William glanced at his watch, reading the time displayed by the luminous dials. 01:13, seven minutes until departure. He continued around the tent, checking on the others.....

by **Cyzawza** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 12:12 pm

Phoenix2012 wrote:
Cyzawza wrote:
Gerard knew that Nathan was barely an acquaintance at this point, but he knew all too much of the struggles Nathan had mentioned prior, it was hard not to try to offer help as he had done many times before. He knew that the Fringe had read each of the soldiers here today like a book before selecting them, so he was confident Nathan's trauma would not be a threat to the mission here today. Nathan would be able to sort out his own problems, on the battlefield.

As Nathan certified his readiness, Gerard said back to the Captain, "So it appears we are both ready. Again, call the word and I will be up, Captain."

William nodded, satisfied that they were ready.
"Good. I'll check the others and then we can head out."
As he turned to leave, he added,
"Oh, and you can call me Will, or William. Hell, you can call me a bloody bastard if you want, just cut the 'Captain' crap out. We all know that ranks are bullshit these days anyways. Really, I've never liked the formality everyone tries to impose on each other. If you need anything, just holler."
William glanced at his watch, reading the time displayed by the luminous dials. 01:13, seven minutes until departure. He continued around the tent, checking on the others.....

Gerard couldn't help but force a laugh. "I'm just messin' with ya. I'm quite the joking type you see. if you're that uneasy about me callin' you Captain by all means, William, I'll call ya William."

He couldn't help but agree with what William said however, ranks did really seem more meaningless than before now that he was working with the Fringe. When your closest ally is a man or woman who would die rather than let these terrorists win, their rank really doesn't matter. A selfless private is worth a thousand times more than a selfish general. Gerard was certainly prepared to have to sacrifice himself for the greater good of his team, and the innocent world, including his family. The real question, however, was when would he die?

by **Galdius** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 1:17 pm

Azerbaijan, 20-clicks West of Kijaba.
Russian Forward Operating Base Sadko, Briefing Tent
1:04 AM

The briefing had done nothing but show that Asset retrieval operation had a lot of moving parts and little room for error. With the dodgy contacts, an unstable country under circle control with a sizable military force, a complete lack of backup or support, and as strong believer in Murphy's law, Olivia knew that the mission had all the right parameters to turn into something similar to the Fallujah ambush back in 2004. She didn't like the operation one bit, however, the opportunity to nab a defector, one of the biggest fish's in the circles private pond, could never be pasted up, no matter how paper thin the plan was. But with the primary factor of success in the hands of some shady spook who most likely had his own secret agenda was putting an insane amount of pressure on the small six man team, most of whom, Olivia didn't know jack shit about them outside of their dossier and like always, it was making her pretty damn anxious to be putting her life in the hands of these people. As she analysed the map once more, Olivia removed a small metallic cigarette case from her shirt pocket and promptly lit one it up. She made a mental note of all the way points, checkpoints and anything else that might be relevant later before heading out get her stuff and link up with the rest of the unit.

Olivia didn't exactly pack lightly, along with her chest rig and tan BDU, she was taking a assault pack filled with enough to last her forty eight hours, including ammo, spare magazines, extra optics, MRE's and civilian clothing, she wanted to a fighting chance against the likelihood of being stranded without extraction behind enemy lines, a position she had been in once before and didn't want to repeat. As for weaponry, along with the standard issue sidearm, she took her Mk 12 mod 1 which had been fitted with a Leupold MR/T scope, suppressor and a collapsible stock rather than the standard DMR variant of the XM9. While dated, it preformed better at longer ranges than the XM9, was compact enough to use in close quarters, and used the standard 5.56×45mm and Stanag magazine. It was a weapon that she held with high regard and had saved her skin on more occasions than she could count. She wasn't about to battle without her trusted Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife either. having kept it from royal marine days, it was an excellent piece of kit and a great knife, thin and long enough to pierce though the gap in the victims rib-cage, into the vital organs and pull right out with ease. Having most of her gear packed and ready to get to work, she headed to the waiting point, puffing away at her hand rolled cigarette as she came across the rest of the group, who were all ready to head out.

Olivia quickly got in line with the rest, standing next to south African who according to his file was called Gerhardus Marais, the man had served in the South African National Defense Force as a medic. He hadn't served in any sort of special forces or military intelligence unit, but with war being waged across the world and with the casualties piling up, there was no doubt a lack of special forces personnel to recruit in, but she wasn't about to turn her nose up at the guy, considering that he passed through the intense selection process and had experience fighting against circle forces, which was what they needed the most right now. Olivia continued to puff away and remained silent as the captain Buckner began introducing himself. She already knew who he was and the both of them had worked together once in during a protection operation. She knew that he was a competent commander but couldn't help but find herself disagreeing with the notion that rank was "pointless", especially now with them fighting an enemy more advanced than they where. But she kept quiet and with six minutes to go time, she quietly checked over her gear to pass the time.

by **Nexeria** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 2:19 pm

Marcus Cavor
Shanghai, China

After the agents completely ignored Marcus's question, the assassin let out a sigh before closing his eyes as he rubbed his forehead. He figured that he might as well listen to Mr. Dahlin speak for the time being seeing as how everyone's attention was directed towards the CEO, but it was at that moment that Marcus sensed something. Something foul. Something repulsive. Something noxious.

Marcus's eyes shot open as his gaze fell upon the heavy-set bodyguard sitting across from him and to the right of Mr. Dahlin. The man held in his right hand a silver lighter with a gold trim and in his left hand was a lit cigarette. The man then took his first huff from the cigarette and let out breath of toxic fumes that quickly began spreading throughout the limo. Marcus's right eye twitched as an agonizing pain grew inside his head. He jerked his head slightly to the left before commenting on the disturbance, "Excuse me, Sir, would you mind putting out that cigarette?"

The bodyguard simply shrugged before replying, "Look, man, this my first puff all day. I apologize if it bothers you, but I really need this right now."

Marcus eye twitched more noticeable this time as replied in a slightly more annoyed tone, "Trust me, Sir, it is very beneficial to your health that you stop smoking that cigarette right now."

Unsure if Marcus meant that as threat, the bodyguard replied, "Umm... no. Sorry."

"Jesus Fucking Christ! You must have been born on a freeway because that's where most accidents happen!" Marcus shouted disregarding any conversation going on between the agents and the CEO. Marcus then glared at the agents before asking, "Will somebody please tell this bastard to put that fucking cigarette out before I have to throw him out of this limo?"

by **Lenciland** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 7:51 pm

Shanghai, China
Dahlin sat listening intently to what the others had to say about him. Gamma obviously hated him, these kinds of procedures weren't necessary as the Circle had contacted him and he knew that he was a pawn, but maybe Gamma got some satisfaction from it. She certainly had more on her mind than her mission and he wanted to know. Felix would probably probe her during the remainder of the car ride. He was about to answer her when Cavor asked his own question about his relevance to the mission.

"Cavor certainly will be busy,"Dahlin thought as he sat there," he'll reactive of course, but who cares. The Circle will control this city before the month is out."

Suddenly, Delta announced that they were five minutes from their destination, then Cavor had an outburst about his bodyguard's cigarette. Cavor obviously didn't like cigarettes and neither did Dahlin. He found smoking most distasteful and had instructed his guards to never smoke in the presence of company.

"Put that damn cigarette out already," Dahlin ordered with a mask of fury falling onto his face, an act of course, but terrifying nonetheless," these people are your bosses. They control your career and life. Hell, I've got an urge to kill you myself, and fuck knows that they'll kill you within a second thought! Goddamnit! Sätt cigaretten ute nu! " Dahlin took a moment to calm himself,"You'll be grateful to know that this mission is more important to your damn cigarette, but it will have severe repercussions." The guard quickly put the cigarette and kept his mouth shut.

"Now where were we," Dahlin said the mask instantaneously falling from his face," Oh yes, Cavor you, my friend, are here to dispose of uncooperative industrialists and bankers. One way or another we will have Shanghai under Circle control within the month. Once we control Shanghai we can influence the entirety of China. Ms. Gamma, quite simply I don't know why the Circle keeps me around. I've got certain talents, but these aren't unique. Fariba Mahmoud, for example, is probably more qualified as a bio-tech researcher or even a CEO. I'm probably kept around because, unlike Fariba, I've got nothing to lose. My only purpose in life is to work towards goals that I believe and they aligned with the Circle's long before they contacted me," Dahlin allowed himself a brief moment of hidden misery to swell in his heart as he thought of his family and partner," I just know that the Circle is the best chance that I have of ending the jävlarna that ruined my personal life. I'm now utterly committed to doing the bidding of the Circle; I'm a pawn in a larger game and I want to be apart of that game. I want the Circle to control the world so that we can save it, and I can extract revenge. I may want revenge against the jävlarna that killed my family, but I have the end goal in mind. Everything I have done in the past years has been for the advancement of the Circle's power. Now can we change the subject to the task at hand?"

by **Nexeria** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 8:55 pm

Marcus Cavor
Shanghai, China

"Thank You, Mr. Dahlin. I greatly appreciate you for respecting my complaints." Marcus complimented the CEO for having put his dim-witted goon in his place. Glaring back at the bodyguard's embarrassed face, noticing that the man was now nervously shaking his leg, Marcus said, "As for you, I recommend you break that smoking habit of yours quickly before it kills you."

Marcus then listened as Mr. Dahlin explained what his role would be for the duration of the Circle's stay in Shanghai. Noting that Felix would most likely want many men killed, Marcus questioned the methods of their termination, "Excuse me, Mr. Dahlin, or should I say, Felix, now that we're friends, how would you like me to eliminate your targets? Separately or should we gather them all up in one place? I assume the best and sloppiest option would be to have all the targets converge in on one place and finish them all off then and there? Problem being that their will probably be a lot more collateral damage as opposed to separate assassinations, unless, of course, we can lure them into a more exclusive location."

Marcus took a slight breath of air before continuing, "Don't get me wrong, I can handle taking them out one at a time, but the Shanghai PD will most likely catch on to the link between the killing and/or disappearances, which could then cause a public announcement addressing a certain unknown serial killer targeting certain bankers and industrialists, which then may result in some of potential targets to pack their bags and flee the city or country out of fear."

"These are just a few concerns that I want addressed before I receive more information on my targets. So, suggestions, anyone?" Marcus finished leaving the decision up to his associates.

by **Mincaldenteans** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 8:59 pm

Agent Gamma

The ride took on a soothing silence for an indeterminable amount of time - mostly because Gamma had no intention of entertaining Marcus and his irritating obfuscations to the actual matter at hand - while she stared at Dahlin and processed everything he had to say. Of course she had already assessed and approved of him the moment he said the magic word that was necessary to be favored by her and her superiors. Yes, the Circle wanted him, yes her superiors wanted to be sure that he was ready for the position that he would put himself and them in, and yes, in the end he needed to be up to snuff (and more) than what was on paper and a few past informal interviews.

She smiled, almost approvingly. "Belief and motivation, Mr. Dahlin. It is the reason why we're more successful than any other organizations legitimate or otherwise. It is the reason we are threat and it is the reason why we are treated like an entity rather than some ragtag ill mannered band of terrorists. You believe you can do all that is within your power to assist us, and you've already established yourself in making it apparent. You believe that our methods and goals will get you want you want, you believe that our victory would bring about some semblance of peace when the dust settles. That kind of self motivation and belief gets you places, Mr. Dahlin, no doubt you've already seen and done for yourself."

Gamma almost nodded with the same approval tone but her eyes were colder than winter as she concluded her statement, "Good, you couldn't possibly do this task without some modicum of belief and motivation and I would have snapped your neck personally before you took a step out of this vehicle; and poor Marcus here would be left without a playmate to build his sandcastle with. We can't have that now can we?"

The limousine stopped and Gamma turned her head to see a black tinted skyscraper that looked like fine polished marble as the morning light bounced of it in perfect angles. The door open, none too soon, and Gamma stared at the lot of them while Omega was the first to step out. Her gaze though was fixed on Dahlin and her smile softened while the harsh coldness in her eyes held a degree of personality and warmth, "After you, Mr. Dahlin, we have much to do before high noon."

by **Lenciland** » Wed Oct 22, 2014 2:55 pm

The silence that ensued after his brief monologue and Cavor's questions was uncomfortable at best, but Dahlin had no intention of breaking it. Gamma sat staring at him intently, the others sat looking at various things. Dahlin just sat there until finally Gamma spoke for the first time in nearly a minute.

She spoke with surprising approval about his answer and proceeded to talk of their new actions and plans. Things about belief and motivation that he had received a million time before, but he sat there listening intently as if hearing those words for the first time. He was pleasantly surprised to see that she approved of his past dealings and hadn't mentioned his past faux pas.

"Well Cavor, we won't know how many that you need to kill until we finish all of our meetings," Felix said flashing a warm smile at the maniacal gentleman," I don't know how many want to support us or how many want to oppose us, but when we do you can start your killing."

As he the limo pulled into the drive in front of the building Gamma said that she would have snapped his neck had he not pleased her," Ha," he thought," that would make my life a thousand times simpler."

"I wouldn't like that very much Agent Gamma," Dahlin said," I might have even put up more of a fight than you expected. I am a man of surprises after all and wouldn't wouldn't want to anger Marcus now would you, he is pretty unpredictable from what I can tell. Thank you Agent Gamma," Dahlin smiled to her with the same degree of warmth that she displayed to him," Yes we have much work to do before the day ends. I'd hate to miss a meeting."

With that Dahlin stepped out of the limo and walked to the appointed conference room with a spring in his step and a confident smile.

by **Jessjohnesik** » Thu Oct 23, 2014 12:28 pm

FD Conference, London, UK

The lights would suddenly dim, signifying the soon start of the presentation. The loud chatter that existed before would start to go out as well. The large hi-tech smartboard would light up, illuminating the immediate area in front of and the light expanding as the lights continued dimming. They wouldn't go out completely, however.

About thirty seconds passed and an FD operative appeared, seemingly being the one who was going to explain the FD's structure, purpose, situation, cases and the current operations. A good half of the information should already be inside the new personnel's brains, but the important parts were not, besides this briefing was necessary by law.

The woman in her middle thirties, dressed in a red suit and black formal pants, made a quick entrance as she manipulated a layout on her tablet. She was mongoloid in race, East Asian to be precise. Putting her tablet on the frontmost table, she cast a glance on all those present. Her face wore a serious expression with a slightly welcoming undertone.

"Good morning to you all. I am Sun Min Pôm and I am the second head of Fringe Division of the British Isles." She started, her hand mannerisms evident as she talked.

"As you all likely know, Fringe Division was formed by the European Union in approximately 2016, although it was named differently and the complete organisation as we know today only fully morphed into itself by 2018, the year in which countries outside Europe began to open up their own Fringe Divisions." She paused, talking a breath and letting the newcomers soak up all the information given, yet info they should've already known, "The Circle uses fractured research facilities in part to generate its massive scientific capabilities which are also at the base of the amount of power it has accumulated over the years. Unfortunately, to prove their usefulness or sometimes by accident due to commonly unorganised pro-Circle groups, this science is released into the society, commonly causing civilian casualties and great damage." Sun explained, her frown emphasising on the mention of casualties.

"These events, or as the Circle calls, tests, are considered terrorist attacks and can be anything. From deadly biological agents to destructive chemo physical substances. Unfortunately, these attacks intensify and go up in numbers as time goes. However Fringe Division has proven to be a great nuisance to the Circle and one of the leading combatting organisations able to become such a threat to what seems at first as a highly overpowered enemy with too many tricks up their sleeve. " Sun continued, sitting down and continuing the presentation through the computerised table, the surface of which is actually a large computer screen. Various images were then shown in the span of five minutes, many of which gruesome.

Min Pôm continued to establish that any form of spying is a great offence and that strange activity will lead to serious consequences. The chances for this were low, however, as FD had some of the most trusted personnel, this feature helping it be extremely effective the way it is. Sun proceeded to name each new agent's rank, doing the same for researchers.

Finally, after the information was given, Sun wanted to hear questions, noting that work will start just four hours of the same day. FD couldn't waste time.

Shanghai Tower, Shanghai, China

Delta had led their group into the building right after everyone had gotten out of the car. She ignored the receptionist, who, knowing for whom the group was here for, let them through no questions asked and made a notifying call.

Phi, who had come through another exit, masked herself as a civilian reading a magazine, staying on the first floor for the purpose of warning those upstairs in case something happens.

Delta made her way to the elevator, the doors shutting once everyone was inside. She wondered how this meeting could go, thinking up of two completely radical possibilities. They were supposed to make a serious contract with China's third largest bank's CEO, who wanted to ally with the Circle. Cavor and Blaushwert didn't quite fit into this role, but their stay in Shanghai had multiple objectives, some included the need for skills they had.

Reaching floor 65, Delta unhurriedly made her way to the CEO's personal office, easily let through by the many guards and the receptionist, who knew of their arrival, but where obviously oblivious who they were. Not that they ever knew who the CEO's various visitors are. Omega stopped outside the office, going to perform the same role as Phi, while Delta, Gamma, Cavor and Blaushwert would go in and make a good and enticing contract.

by **Galdius** » Thu Oct 23, 2014 5:27 pm

Azerbaijan, 20-Klicks West of Kijaba.
Russian Forward Operating Base Sadko
01:19

It was go time.

The droning sound of a helicopter engine was now audible throughout the base as SOCPU team rushed towards the FOB's airport where the single CH-47 Chinook sat, ready to ferry and helocast them and a rigid-inflatable boat into the Caspian sea, It was a hazardous method of insertion for the team and a number of things could go fatally wrong, but with the recent increase in IRIA security in and around Iran, it was the safest option out of the rest. Without wasting any time, SOCPU quickly piled into the back of the large Transport helicopter, and once everyone was seated, the large jaw like ramp at the end slowly closed shut and the helicopter took off for its destination, leaving SOCPU and back of the helicopter drenched in darkness which only illumination came from the various small lights from the cockpit.

Iran, Sisangan Beach, 235 klicks north of tehran.
Meeting point with Cheshire cat
02:39

"Kill the engine."

the boat grew closer and closer to the beach which looked almost silver like under the intense moonlight. Not a single soul was in sight of the team, the only sound to be heard was the splashing of the waves against the side of the RIB. It was the only surreal, beautiful and peaceful moment that they would experience tonight, as unfortunately for the them, this was only the calm before the storm. The boat was slowly pushed ashore by the tide and eventally landed on the sliver like sand and the team, after around an hour at sea, finally got to stand on some hard ground. The status report was sent in to command, the boat was dragged ashore and hidden in some thick foliage to the best of the teams abilities, it wasn't going to fool a lot of people, but it would buy them some time once the sun up, which they were going to seriously need if any delays happened. Now with everything squared away, they began hiking south under the cover of darkness towards the meeting location which was stationed a klick away in near a small abandoned house where they would get transportation from the contact known as the Cheshire cat but as the team got closer to the two hundred meter mark, the sound of several shouting illegible voices quickly broke the silence of the night. It was coming from the meets location and didn't sound friendly at all, but that wasn't the worrying part.

The contact was supposed to be alone.

by **Chedastan** » Thu Oct 23, 2014 8:34 pm

Iran, Sisangan Beach, 235 klicks north of Tehran.
Meeting point with Cheshire Cat
02:39:58
02:39:59
02:40:00

Nathan had gazed upon the moon lit sky while they were in the water earlier, it wasn't too often now that someone like him could still see beautiful sights, in their overwise shit world. It was one of the things that sort of acted as a reminder to him that there was still beauty here. But of course now everything may as well be the opposite to that, as shit could quite very possibly hit the fan now. Upon hearing the illegible shouting, which Nathan could only presume were in Farsi, he stopped in his tracks, and kneel down into a crouching position. As he was pretty sure their contact, Cheshire Cat, was suppose to be alone when they were to meet.

Speculation then went through Nathan's thoughts that the contact was found and killed, or is in hiding somewhere, hopefully in the area if that's the case. Nathan looked at their team leader, William, he knew they should probably see what they might be dealing with first. "Shit, we should send a spotter out, we don't know what we're dealing with." He suggested to him, in a hushed voice in case one of them heard. Nathan could already feel the sense of him going to kill a Circle affiliate, he was accustomed to it.

by **Mincaldenteans** » Fri Oct 24, 2014 12:41 am

Conference Hall
Alice

The young hacker had paid as much attention to Sun's boring histrionics with about as much dedication as a child with a new toy-of-the-week. She and Karla were more than aware of the Circle and their abilities, were more than aware of just how far reaching they were and in some way, they had a certain unique insight on the largest threat to 'global security' (NATO did love to sound self-aggrandizing, so why not Fringe?) mainly because they had managed to hack into their systems once and unwittingly at that. Considering their combined skills behind a computer, it was as much a shock to them as it was a red flag to pack up and go.

The Circle had tried to entice them, going through a series of amateur hackers that sent coded missives to them all of which were soundly ignored or outright rejected. It didn't seem as though "no" was in the Circle's vocabulary and they were hounded for a couple of months before all attempts to recruit them suddenly stopped. As though their interest laid elsewhere, the cyber power duo no longer worth their attention. Of course, as fate would have it, that's when Fringe came knocking and laid out their past clandestine activities against the rich, famous and powerful. Alice herself wasn't quite sure whether to be insulted or flattered (past the verbose stance she made toward F.D. with multiple middle fingers and every curse word one could think of several flavors of human language) that they were being passed up only to be backed into a corner.

Karla's patience had won the negotiation - of course it would have - and since then they had been playing systems admins to this lot of nerds who probably didn't know what the inside of a tower looked like. Pity, Alice thought to herself, all that brains not a smidgen of common sense.

She raised her hand and instead of waiting to be called or acknowledge she started. Somehow speaking above anyone else gave her a mild satisfaction - Karla could yell at her later, or maybe she'd laugh later, Karla was a little unpredictable sometimes. "Yeah, so while you all are doing your nerdy research and what not, exactly what am I and my dollface next to me supposed to do? I hope you're letting us lose into the cyber world - not that any of you could have contained us, but we've been playing by your rules long enough. I'd like to know exactly what our limits are when we're cruising the interwebs and sniffing out Circle activity for the rest of you point dexters. Yeah, that'll be swell."

Shanghai, China
Gamma

The whole building had such a sterile cleanliness to it that it was almost artificial just taking in the interior to the sense. I wonder if that's how they see me, Gamma thought to herself. A few quiet murmurs spread among those few that recognized Jace, but they did not say anything out loud nor approached, respecting the group's presence while staring in awe - as though they couldn't quite believe an icon was among them. Now seated in an expensive leather office chair, Gamma had tucked herself in, waving off an attendant and crossed her legs and relaxed against the comfortable chair.

She didn't get too comfortable of course, these chairs were a threat to her keen senses, something to lull her in a false sense of security simply because the seat was supple. "Gentlemen, you've all been called her for a specific purpose. You know the drill, you know what's at stake. Mr. Dahlin here has presence in Shanghai, and in order to get this city under our influence we're going to need to fulfill a few critical goals.

"First, the Circle has deemed it worthy to back Mr. Dahlin's enterprise by buying out other companies though public offerings. As far as I was able to gather, Mr. Dahlin was already in the works of acquiring a few companies, backed by this bank and its affiliates and no doubt its funds are helped by us as well. While he continues to destabilize the local economy here, the Circle has been acquiring various public works and environmental companies quietly. This has been ongoing for almost 5 years before we encountered Felix and we think now is the most opportune moment to begin," she smiled, "aggressive tactics."

Turning to Jace and Cavor, "You two were selected again due to your high profiles. No doubt Shanghai authorities will become aware of your presence. We are currently working to hamper that notice until our say so. Marcus, my dear, you'll be given a list of a select few that we want you to take care of. Silently, cleanly, none of that business you did back in Brazil. Jace, you're to begin projecting your presence through the masses - I don't need to tell you how to do your job.

"Your first target is on his way here right now to sign our contract. We're not going to eliminate him just yet, so be the charming gentlemen I'm sure you're capable of being."

by **Whittington** » Fri Oct 24, 2014 10:32 pm

Conferance Hall
Victoria Grayson

Victoria sat back in her chair, her eyes fixated on the images of death and destruction. One particular image, which was only shown for a few seconds, showed the building that she was trapped in, with her father's corpse atop of her.

She showed no emotion but on the inside she was screaming, her chest felt like it was bein crushed. Victoria blinked a couple times, not allowing the tears to form and continued on with the presentation. The Circle was responsible for so much death and destruction. They had to be stopped, failure wasn't an option.

"How do we manage going about this?" Victoria asked. "I mean, surely by now you must know of some of their locations. Even if it's a small lead, it should be followed up on. " She added.

by **Walabam** » Sat Oct 25, 2014 5:05 am

Jolene swept her hair back before the presentation had started. Everything and anything that was going to happen was considered important to Jolene. While she expected the presentation to be more exciting than waiting, she knew it wasn't really impossible. For one, the speaker didn't seem like a cheerful person, but rather a person who observed the importance of being formal and whatnot. For two, the dimmed lights didn't really brighten up the atmosphere, although it was required for the slides to be displayed well on the screen.

The presentation's contents were nothing new to Jolene. She had read and heard about The Circle right after her sister's death. Though saddened by her departure, Jolene knew being sad wasn't going to bring her sister back, neither was it going to make her death worthwhile. She had brought around with her the articles from newspapers and printed copies from news websites everyday since the day of her sister's death. What she did not have with her were the gruesome pictures that had been displayed on the screen itself, some of which had made her think of her late sister. Jolene let out a deep sigh before she turned to look around, before focusing back on the screen.

Minutes after the pictures were displayed, the presenter started to read out the ranks of each and every new member of the FD. As always, Jolene paid attention the the ranks and names of each and every member inside the conference room. "Assistant Special Agent Jolene Hsieh," the presenter read out. Jolene smiled lightly and nodded, taking pride in her new rank.

"When are we starting?" Jolene asked as prompted.

by **Lenciland** » Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:47 am

Shanghai, China
The architectural features of the interior were utterly captivating and almost as stream-lined and sleek as the outside. Dahlin followed Gamma to their waiting area, and he was surprised to see the deference the staff showed to them. When they took their seats Felix sat listening with rapt attention to what Gamma said.

He sat listening to their briefs and what they were to do. He was to buy out or replace a number of companies in the Shanghai area and bring it under the economic control of the Circle. The Circle's long term plans in Shanghai were astonishing and ingenious. Cavor and Blauschwert were to eliminate unwilling participants, but they were to be quieter than when they were in other places.

Gamma finished her brief with the mission. They were to take their target and give him a very persuasive contract for his support. After that they had many more contracts to sign and people to persuade before the Fringe Division was notified of their presence in the area.

"Gamma, I have a few a questions about the targets. What does he do?"Dahlin asked as he looked at a smartphone,"Who is this guy anyways?"

The Rising: Exaltation RP/IC/OPEN

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