soul clef xi (closed)

[daggersedge]

who: agent south dakota, felix, and locus
what: putting weeks of recon into practice
when: mid-december
where: the deciduous forest outside the city
warnings: language, talk of violence


By all accounts, Freelancer Agent South Dakota is dead. Shot in the head by Caboose, of all people. Which, incidentally, had to have been a fluke. Caboose couldn't intentionally shoot someone if his life depended on it.

Whatever the case, she's dead. Has been for years. And yet, according to Locus' recon, she isn't. She's alive and well, waltzing around with no hole in her skull whatsoever. Well, unless the missing eye counts. Apparently, that's a new development.

It's been weeks since Locus spotted her. Weeks of waiting while his partner scoped out the situation. Felix's patience ran thin after a few days. If it'd been up to him, they would've killed her and been done with it. He's had enough Freelancers to last him a fucking lifetime. But apparently, that's not an option. Apparently, they need more information, first.

Locus and his fucking Freelancer obsession....

In the end, Felix convinced his partner that they weren't going to get any more information out of his sniper rifle — unless he wanted to see whether or not she could survive a(nother) headshot. So, after sending a message to the Guard requesting a little monster-hunting with the woman in purple armor, he's finally on his way to meet her face-to-face. Or ... whatever. As close as he gets, these days.

When he arrives (fully armed and armored, of course), Felix scans the area for any sign of purple armor or blonde hair. In the meantime, he checks the private comm link between himself and his partner by grumbling, "Just for the record, I still say this is fucking stupid."

Comments

[whosthemonsternow]

"Couple years back." Nice and vague, careful, make it broad. Don't pinpoint it.

"Look, this shit is insane, I get it. But, ya know, it only gets more ridiculous outside the gate. I've ran into trolls- and not the fuzzy headed colorful ones, either. Seen a dragon twice, too far to get. Got a saber tooth tiger, you know, the super extinct things? Killed one out there. And that's just the surface. Shit's crazy."

She rattles off, jerking a thumb over her shoulder towards the wall. She hopes it can help distract him, get him off of the timeline- get him away from who she is and where she was before this.

[daggersedge]

That's a whole lot of talking from someone who has been so close-mouthed up until now. She's dodging the question — and doing a sloppy job of it, too. Behind his visor, Felix rolls his eyes. Christ, this might take more work than he thought.

"Crazier than time travel?" he asks with a laugh. Then he shrugs, as though conceding the point. "Well, don't make me take your word for it. Let's check it out."

Confident that Locus has her in his sights, Felix approaches the Freelancer without hesitation. He moves with ease, not too fast or too slow, and keeps his empty hands away from his weapons. Nothing threatening about him at all.

"You got a name, darlin'?"

That's a question he can ask without drawing suspicion. Let's face it; it'd be pretty fucking weird for her to refuse to give a name after already learning his.

[whosthemonsternow]

She's still a little unsure, but he doesn't seem to know anything to do with the Project or Freelancer, or her. The UNSC is big, the Project was important- but maybe it's downfall and the whole situation died down and is less known to as many people. Or any people... Maybe she's being stupidly hopeful.

Caution is high in her mind, but she tries to push it aside a bit, tries to proceed as she might with anyone else.

She gestures for him to step ahead when he comes closer, turning slightly, keeping him on her left.

"It sure as hell isn't 'darling'." She replies, glancing up and waiting for the gate to be opened for them. "You can call me South." She hopes it sounds like a nickname or something simple.

[daggersedge]

There it is. Confirmation at last. Funny, how a little patronizing nickname can get so much out of people.

"South," he repeats — and once again, it's not for his benefit; it's entirely for Locus. There's no trace of recognition in his tone. Given Project Freelancer's covert status, any hint of it could be damning.

"All right, then," he continues, as though choosing not to question a nickname. The gate opens just enough for them to pass through, and Felix reaches for his DMR — keeping the motion nice and easy to read, of course. Once he has the rifle at low ready, he tilts his head towards South and allows his smirk color his tone, "Let's go."

He takes the lead without a hint of hesitation. He's not concerned about showing his back to South; Locus has him covered.

Speaking of Locus.... Felix cuts his suit's external speakers and switches to their private comm link.

"There's your confirmation. Now can we please kill her and be done with this shit?"

[inreality]

Locus has listened in carefully, kept them trained in his sights as Felix starts leading her out. He knows he'll need to move soon, if they get too far, but he can do that. He's trying to keep focused on the situation, all the while letting the information they're gathering settle in his head.

People come from different times: Locus and Felix hadn't, by some miracle. It's Agent South Dakota, and no shit she's from a "couple years back." She's dead.

Felix comes over the radio and Locus would roll his eyes if he didn't have his rifle trained on South. Really, Felix could make it easier for him and not put the violent, unstable Freelancer behind him.

"No. She's clearly had history here. They'll know if we make a move against her, and that would make our lives here very difficult." It's not that Locus wants to stay for an extended period, of course. But if their ability to go home is directly related to the law enforcement here... they need to lay low.

"... And please keep in mind that this particular agent is known for shooting Agent Washington in the back."

[whosthemonsternow]

She keeps him more to her left, doesn't trust him on her blind side. She trusts the beasts out here more, right now. She knows their motives. This guy's from where she was killed, where she was hunted, where her life fell apart. He doesn't seem to know her or anything, a small plus, but she's still leery.

"How much training do you have?" She asks after a second, both because she needs to know if he's going to be a risk out here, and to get a better idea of him.

His armor is different, maybe he's an entirely different, distant branch of the UNSC that never had much to do with anything anywhere near here. Maybe she is still alright here. This is her second chance goddamn it, this guy isn't going to ruin that! Not that she's planning to do anything to him, or let anything happen to him. She hasn't lost anyone outside the walls yet, hasn't even let them get more than a little busted up, and those times only happened before she even got to them! She's keeping her eye on him, pistol drawn but to her side a bit, HUD's radar keeping track of their surroundings. Thank god for Cisco and his nerdy armor repairs, her HUD is decked out and she feels a little more at ease with the information flooding through her visor.

[daggersedge]

It's possible that Locus mentioned that incredibly fucking important fact during one of their many, many arguments over what to do about the Freelancer. Felix chooses to believe that it's brand new information.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me," he snaps, still speaking exclusively to his partner. And oh, how he'd like to go on. Berate Locus for not leading with that information. For not saying something earlier, preferably before he'd shown his back to the crazy bitch. To remind Locus that what he's doing takes finesse and all kinds of other shit. But South asks him a question, and all Felix has time to do is scoff before he switches his suit's speakers back on.

He didn't miss playing the mercenary with a heart of gold, but he knows he's damn good at it.

Felix slows down to allow the Freelancer to catch up so that they're walking side-by-side. She's keeping him on her left, he notes. Doesn't trust him to watch her blind side.

"Here? You're my training," he says, and his tone is friendly once again. "I'm a mercenary back home. This place doesn't have much demand for that, so I figured I'd check out the Guard after they offered me a position. Gotta make a living, right?"

It's not the whole truth, of course, but it's not a lie.

"What about you? You don't look like a rookie."

[whosthemonsternow]

"People do pay to go beyond the wall since not a lot of us guards will take trips for funsies." It's not mercenary work, but it does great for extra pay on the side. She's taken people out, depending on the pay she'd take them out different locations. Further away or more dangerous cost more, of course. But it was worth it, she saved a lot of asses already. And got to play with the crazy monsters roaming the wilds here.

She considers his question, she can answer it without giving too much, and it's the truth too.

"I was UNSC, served in ODST." Vague still, but it's a true and good answer. "And been here long enough to know my way around and what to expect."

She's still eyeing him, but she's trying to get out of that paranoid mindset. He's from home, but not her time, not her location, not Freelancer. He's not here to hunt her down and drag her back. She has no bounty on her head- she's already been killed at home. She's already dead. She shouldn't have anything to worry about, right?