ARGUS Headquarters - Zurich, Switzerland
Yoake Akai
Shogun
Yoake Akai
Shogun
Yoake Akai
AKAI WORKED the fabric of her white glove between her teeth as she strode toward the command room. She found herself hyper-aware of every motion she made- the length of each step, tensing of every muscle, the light swaying of her uniform's epaulettes. Akai paused for a moment before the doors to ARGUS' central command room, inspecting her apperance in the polished metal. She withdrew her gloved hand from her face, cursing herself for letting her old nervous habit of biting her own fingers come back. Akai centered herself, and took in her reflection. 5'4" was tall for a Japanese woman- unfortunately, it was short in most other parts of the world. Heeled boots could only do so much for her commanding presence. Her uniform was much the same as the costume she'd worn during her public hero days in Tokyo. Formal, but militaristic, easy to move in, and fitted with hidden micro-armor thanks to the work of her Builder teammate. The biggest change from her older costume was the color- pure, stark white, broken up only by black and gold decoration. Good genes and good makeup kept the lines of age off of her face. It took her only seconds to conclude her self-inspection, pushing a stray strand of bleached white hair back into place. The... situation that had come up regarding Joseph- Arsenal was dredging up uncomfortable memories of the events that had driven her into becoming the director of ASET in the first place. However, as leader, any effect those memories might have on her mentally would have to remain hidden. Gripping the sheathe of the katana at her hip, Akai punched in her access code and entered ARGUS' central command room.
Edwin Hollands
It was like something out of a NASA facility. A depressed center area held rows of tables covered with computer monitors, ARGUS agents darting all about in a kind of controlled chaos. Short stairways on either side led up to a kind of raised observation deck, where dark-suited officials and costumed heroes muttered amongst themselves in hushed tones. Akai stepped up the stairs quietly, weaving between crowds until she located her target- Edwin Hollands, a man so ordinary looking that it caused him to stand out. The man cut a striking profile, silhouetted against the massive main display that took up the entire front wall of the command room. Akai had to wonder if Hollands positioned himself intentionally to create such an impression.
"Grey." She greeted Hollands by his alias. It was almost customary for ARGUS' employed metahumans to do so in all but the most private settings. Hollands' dark brown eyes were nearly black in the dimly lit command room, which made it very hard for Akai to read his emotional state. Her power wouldn't help out either. All it told her was information she already knew, about how Hollands would fight. He'd taken the ARGUS standard combat training, the same as everyone else. Akai could see the efficiency and pragmatism of militaristic hand-to-hand techniques etched into Hollands' body and limbs, but the etchings were faint and fuzzy, softened by years of bureaucratic work and diplomacy in lieu of training. 16 seconds, 25 at most, Kyokushin and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu techniques to subdue, apply Iaido draw then Kendo to cut gun hand when he draws- her power awoke unbidden, molding her into the most perfect fighter she could possibly be. Latent stress caused it to activate further. Akai willed it down, refocused, and reprimanded herself mentally for skipping out on her morning practice. Her Northern Praying Mantis was starting to slip, and it would be unforgiveable if she allowed herself to become sloppy. More importantly, morning training would have given her the mental fortitude to keep her power from running on its own. Akai took a small breath, not allowing it to show physically. "Tell me what we've uncovered on Arsenal. Are we still in the dark about him?"
"That would depend on which aspect of this mystery you're referring to." Hollands replied. His British accent gave every word a crisp, clear quality, and every part of the sentence was carefully measured. The man controlled himself as much as Akai did, keeping any trace of emotion detached. Her power, treacherous thing that it was, amended its estimate to 18 seconds, 27 at most.
"Have you found out who took him?" Akai asked again. She always focused on the who, on the opponent. Akai couldn't remember if she'd always been like that, or if her power had made her that way.
"We're 94.68 percent certain that we have, yes." The 'yes' at the end betrayed Hollands' veiled, smug confidence. Akai felt but did not show a twinge of foreboding anticipation. When Hollands felt smug about something, it meant bad news for ASET, and for her most of all.
"Tell me, Grey." Akai ordered, her Japanese accent creeping into her speech more than usual.
Hollands told her.
Akai brought a fist up to her mouth, catching herself before she started chewing on her glove again. "Fuck." She said, with enough volume to clue the command room in to exactly what kind of issue they had to deal with.
The Cabin
Day 1
Day 1
Exactly 24 hours ago, fog had rolled in around the two-story wooden building. 15 hours ago, power and running water had come online, where none had functioned before. 12 hours ago, the holes in the roof were patched. 8 hours ago, the first inhabitant, Joseph Decker, had awoken in a not-wholly-uncomfortable bed, finding himself somewhere he had no memory of ever visiting. The interior was furnished in typical cabin fashion, with vintage-looking furniture, some animal heads on the walls, paintings of natural landscapes, and a seemingly welcoming appearance overall. The fridge and pantry both remained stocked with food, replenishing themselves seemingly automatically. The means by which this was accomplished remained a mystery. Even an all-night vigil revealed nothing regarding the source of it all. The top floor seemed mostly devoted to bedrooms. There were six bedrooms, with two beds in each. Over the next few hours, a colorful cast of young men and women awoke in these beds, slowly raising the amount of inhabitants. The two things they all had in common were their metahuman abilities, and their lack of memory on how exactly they arrived in the cabin. Downstairs was where much of the building's amenities would be found. The kitchen with its strange refilling supply, dining room with a large table for everyone to sit at, living room with three couches and a large screen TV. The television wasn't able to get any kind of cable or satellite, but a selection of DVDs and VHS tapes was stocked in the cabinet below.
The sky outside was a depressing, cloudy gray, matching the fog blanketing the trees. The clearing in which the cabin sat was the only thing not covered in the fog- one could scarcely see 6 feet into the woods before it became impenetrable without venturing outward. The trees were mainly pine, standing tall and proud, towering over even the cabin itself. The atmosphere can be described as unsettling. Birds would occasionally pipe up, though the species seem to be an impossible mix of types from all over the world. The birdsong was broken up sporadically by ear-piercing howling, wholly different from the wolves or coyotes that some might have been accustomed to. 24 hours ago, the howling was distant. Every subsequent time the sound rang out, it sounded... closer...
