Yay, another new chapter! Thanks for sticking with me, guys – hopefully I will have more chapters up for you soon.

~phoenix

-oOo-

"Hold still."

Carlos squirms as Viola grabs his face with one hand, the other hand nearing his eye. He pulls away again, prompting an exasperated sigh from Viola as he protests, "Are you sure this is necessary right now?"

"You're not going to get ten feet into StrexCorp if you don't have the black eyes," Viola presses. "You might as well get used to the contacts now."

Carlos shifts in his chair. "There's a reason I wear glasses. I hate wearing contacts."

"Man up," Viola says with a teasing grin. "Otherwise, we're gonna have to hold you down and force this in."

"Okay, alright, just get it over with," Carlos grumbles, bracing himself. Viola's finger hovers over his eye before sliding in the contact.

"Infiltrating StrexCorp is going to be an act," Viola explains as Carlos rubs irritatedly at his eye. "We need all the parts. The costume, the backstory, the attitude…"

"Do we really need that much detail?" Carlos questions as Viola spins his chair around so he can see in the mirror. He blinks in surprise at his reflection. One of his eyes is like it always is, a dark brown, while the other is filled in completely with black. It sends a shiver down his spine.

"Yes," Viola says in answer to his question. "StrexCorp employees are like trained bloodhounds. They're just waiting to sniff out traitors. If you go in there as Carlos the Scientist instead of Carlos the StrexCorp employee, you'll be right in there with Cecil and we would be nowhere." She starts pacing around the small room outfitted a bit like a hair salon, rummaging through cupboards and looking through a menagerie of products sitting on a table.

Carlos sighs and nods, still studying his reflection. The filled-in eye makes his face seem off-balance. "I suppose that makes sense. I just -"

"-need to get to Cecil. ASAP. Oh, trust me, we're all very aware," Viola interrupts him with a coy smile. Carlos rolls his eyes and tries not to blush stupidly because he always does that and it's literally the worst. "Ready for the next step of your makeover?"
She turns around, a pair of scissors in her hand, and grins.

Carlos unconsciously brings a hand to the top of his hand. "No way. No chance."

"Oh, come on. I didn't think you'd be so vain," Viola teases.

"The last time someone cut my hair shorter than what it is right now, Cecil somehow managed to exile them to the desert," Carlos argued, inching away from the scissors. "That was not a good time."

Viola bit her lip and crossed her arms. "Well, we have to do something."

Carlos sneaks a look at his hair in the mirror. If he's honest, he doesn't want to cut it, either. It's at this great length right now where it spikes up and out just enough without being too long. He likes it like that, and he knows how Cecil feels about it, and it's really stupid and petty but he's not sure if he wants to give that up.

"Do StrexCorp employees wear hats?"

"No," Viola says. "But maybe we can… here."

She grabs something off the table and pours it into her hands. Before Carlos can move to stop her, she smushes his hair full of product, smoothing it out and slicking it back. She takes a step back and admires her handiwork. Carlos winces at his reflection - his hair now looks oily, thin, and generally gross.

"Next, some shading," Viola says, grabbing some kind of powder and getting to work.

Carlos zones out as Viola goes to work on his face, letting his thoughts carry him. If what Raene told him is true, this is only the first step of training. First, they have to pinpoint a look; second, they have to create an identity; third, they have to define the course of action. He doesn't know why so much time and effort has to go into a rescue party, honestly, but - he knows that Raene knows what she's doing. And he knows he wants to get to Cecil. And if that means sitting in a chair while Viola dusts his face with something and crams a second contact in his eye, he's alright with that for now.

When Viola finally takes a step back, Carlos jolts in surprise at his appearance in the mirror. His cheekbones seemed higher and more defined, his nose somehow smaller, and his forehead broader. He turns his head and sees the fake trail of a scar winding its way along his jaw. Combined with his slicked-back hair and now completely-blacked eyes, he looks very little like himself.

He hears the door swing open at his side. He turns to see Raene standing in the doorway. She looks him up and down and nods approvingly.

"Good work, Viola. He looks just gross enough to pass."

"Yeah, thanks," Carlos mumbles, looking back at himself. He's busy trying to figure out exactly how all that powder stuff made his face structure look so different.

Viola notices his confusion and grins. "Old secret," she says with a wink. "Of course, when you find Cecil, you'll have to take it all off."

"Why? He'll be able to recognize me... won't he?"

"Be fair. You can barely recognize yourself," Viola says. "Besides, more likely than not, when you find him, Cecil will be..." Carlos doesn't miss the sharp glance she sends Raene's way. "...basically delirious. You need to be as you as possible."

Carlos swallows. "Okay."

"Basically, you'll need to make yourself look like yourself again, and you're going to have to do it quickly."

Carlos shakes his head. "How am I going to do that? It'll take ages."

"It'll take, like, ten seconds. Okay, here. Sit still."

In one fluid motion, Viola removes both of Carlos's contacts, not giving him time to flinch. She runs her hand messily through his hair, spiking it up again, and produces a small cloth from her pocket. She rubs it aggressively across Carlos's face and jumps back, holding her hands in the air.

"Literally ten seconds," she says triumphantly.

And it's true, because Carlos is now blinking at himself in the mirror looking exactly like himself - if with somewhat greasy hair and a smudged face.

"Wow," he finally says. "Viola, that - that is very impressive. Really."

Viola smiles widely. "Thank you, Carlos. We'll go through the steps again later, of course, but for now, I think Raene is ready to take you."

"Yeah. Thanks again, Viola," Raene says with a warm smile before turning back to Carlos, nodding. "Follow me, please."

Carlos follows Raene out of the small room into the large, main warehouse area. He slept in a room not far away the night before, although sleep did not actually come very easily - he had woken up three or four times in a cold sweat, Cecil's scream in his ears and name on his lips. The cold, unfamiliar room did not do much to ease his fears.

"Everyone here has an assigned job to prepare for the inevitable war against StrexCorp," Raene is explaining somewhere outside of Carlos's thoughts. They pass a group clustered around a tank-like machine, a girl typing rapidly at a computer screen filled with strange runes, and two men inspecting a huge airplane. "Some of us are from Night Vale. Others are from Desert Bluffs. And still others are from towns beyond that, towns StrexCorp has already assimilated, like Littenny and Kestrel Heights."

Carlos furrows his brow. "I've never heard of those places."

Raene nods. "Precisely."

They turn down a hallway to the right and push through a door opening into a larger room already filled with people. Carlos blinks at the familiarity of it - it seems very much like a lecture hall, with many people sitting in desks taking notes while an older man stands at the front of the room talking.

The man is drawing a diagram on the board. He has a graying hair and beard, and stands very much like a soldier, tall and strong. When the door closes loudly, he turns, face pinched in irritation at the interruption, but stops when he sees Raene. She nods, and he nods back respectfully, his gaze also flickering over Carlos. Raene and Carlos slip into nearby desks as the man continues to speak.

"The defining characteristic of any Strex employee lies in their absolute and utter blankness," he is saying. "Until spoken to or provoked, their faces lie slack and expressionless. At the very most, their resting face may appear determined or concentrated, if they have been given an important task or mission. But for the most part, impersonating a Strex means getting rid of all external signs of emotion."

The man flips off the lights and turns on a projector. The group recoils at the picture that appears on the screen, including Carlos. He thinks he sees Raene's face flicker, but other than that, she simply peers at the slide.

"This is an example of a standard Strex workspace," the man says. The picture depicts a regular-looking office with bright yellow walls - slathered in blood and gore. He points an accusing finger at the class. "You would have all been immediately detected with that reaction. While this is obviously disgusting, focus on keeping your expressions intrinsic, rather than wearing them for everyone else to behold."

He flips through more slides of hallways, offices, and even restrooms full of blood and gore. By the seventh or eighth slide, the students start leaning forward, their faces losing the look of utter disgust and returning to normal. They are getting used to the sight. Even Carlos finds himself becoming desensitized to the gore smeared across the walls. He focuses on being able to stare at the pictures without wincing at each new display of horror, without spending too much time thinking about whose blood that has to be.

The man, who Carlos has begun to consider a professor, flips to the next picture and hesitates. Carlos gives a sharp intake of breath because that is a picture of the radio station.

Cecil's radio station.

And it is smeared with so much dark, staining blood.

There are murmurs running through the students. The professor gives a sharp glance in Carlos's direction, and he can feel the stares of other people in the room.

He looks at the picture and he forces his face to be expressionless.

He is filled with inner turmoil, of course of course of course, but he doesn't have to show it.

This is Step 2, after all, and he is going to rescue Cecil.

The professor nods in satisfaction at the reaction. He turns off the projector and the whole room relaxes.

"Strex employees are all about opposites," the professor continues smoothly. "As expressionless as they are when not being communicated with, they respond with intense enthusiasm, devotion, and efficiency when talked to by an administrator. When confronted, they are violently hostile, vicious, and ruthless. You need to be master being able to switch emotions at a moment's notice and without hesitation. If an administrator approaches you with a task and you do not respond with immediate enthusiasm, you will be suspected and possibly arrested."

The professor paces to his desk and taps his fingers against the wood. "You have to understand that any Strex employee working in the headquarters is expected to be completely brainwashed. There are many steps of brainwashing, and the only people allowed to work in the HQ are those who have responded exceedingly well to the process. The process begins, we assume, in the Strex headquarters with..."

Carlos grabs a nearby pencil and scrawls on the notebook Raene has open.

is this was cecil was talking about? "persuasion"

She looks at it for a long time before writing a reply slowly.

we don't know

Carlos rests his face in his hands. Raene pauses before writing:

it's possible but don't be too concerned. brainwashing is a very long process, cecil has not been in there for long enough

Carlos nods. Something horrible occurs to him. He picks up the pencil and doesn't know if he should write it or not, but eventually scribbles quickly:

how long has cody been there?

Raene tears the piece of paper out of her notebook, crumples it up, and throws it away.

"...acting as if you have went through these steps is the only way to blend in," the professor is saying when Carlos finally tunes in again. "Think on that process and what it might do to your own mental well-being. I'll see you all tomorrow."

It is a dismissal, and the other students rise, chattering as they exit the room. Carlos and Raene do not move from their seats (and she is pointedly not looking at him). When the room is emptied of other people, the professor stands and makes his way towards Raene and Carlos, smiling warmly.

"Dr. Kendall. A pleasure to meet you," he says, extending a hand towards Carlos, who takes it. "And you must be Carlos. The scientist."

Carlos nods in confirmation.

"I am very sorry for the position this whole ordeal has put you in," Kendall says, and he seems genuine. "I assure you, I will do everything in my power to help you prepare to rescue your Cecil."

Carlos grows a little warm at the terminology "your Cecil", but stays serious. "Thank you," he says. "Is… everyone here planning on infiltrating Strex?"

Kendall nods. "At some point or another. It's all part of the larger plan."

"If you don't mind me asking," Carlos says, "how is it that you know so much about StrexCorp? And how all the employees act?"

Kendall rubs the back of his head. "It's not exactly something I enjoy talking about at great length, but… I am originally from the town that used to be called Littenny. When Strex took over, I was taken in for brainwashing. This was years ago… before they perfected their techniques. I managed to make it through their sessions without my mind completely breaking. After months of working for them in an effort to stay alive, I managed to escape. I found Raene," he nods in Raene's direction, "and we've been working together ever since."

"Carlos is going in very soon, if all goes according to plan," Raene says to Kendall. "I was wondering if you would be able to get him in for some individual lessons. They'll have to be pretty intensive."

Kendall nods, rubbing a hand over his beard thoughtfully. "That won't be a problem. We'll have a bit of a crash course, so to say."

"Excellent. Can you start tomorrow?" Raene says.

"Can we start today?" Carlos presses, shooting Raene a glance. She sighs.

Kendall seems amused. "Today works fine. Let's say seven o'clock in this room. We'll run through the basics. I can't imagine them taking too long."

"Thank you," Carlos says.

"Like I said. Anything I can do," Kendall said, inclining his head. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I had better prepare for my next class."

"Certainly," Raene says. "We'll be going now. Thank you for your cooperation."

"Of course," Kendall replies as he moves towards his desk. "I'll see you tonight, Carlos."

When Raene and Carlos walk out into the hallway, Raene still refuses to look at him. Carlos can practically feel the tension in the silence. He sighs and finally speaks.

"Look, I'm sorry about bringing up Cody," he says.

Raene whirls and glares at him. "Don't you dare patronize me," she snaps - then stops. She closes her eyes and sighs quietly. When she opens her eyes again, they are determined. "A year."

Carlos breathes in sharply. "Cody's been… a year?"

"We haven't," she searches for words, "we don't… nobody is… we…" her hand bounces against her side anxiously. It is the most distracted Carlos has seen her yet. "We don't know where he is or how to get him or…"

Then she seems to come to her senses. Collect herself. "We're done talking about this. It doesn't matter."

"It does matter," Carlos protests, but she's already walking away, and he's already reluctantly following her.

"We need to focus on getting Cecil back," Raene insists over her shoulder. "Once we do that, we can…"

She never finishes her sentence. Carlos bites the inside of his lip. He wishes there was something he could do to help this girl, but she is not accepting any of his help.

"Step 1 of this process is basically complete," Raene says after a while. "Step 2 will take longer. It will take time to train you completely. We cannot risk rushing and having this whole operation fall in on itself. We have exactly one shot, Carlos, and we can't blow it. Understand?"

"Yes," Carlos says quickly.

"You will have lessons with Dr. Kendall once a day. Myself and a few others will begin gathering our intelligence and start working on Step 3 - getting you a battle plan. Okay?"

"Okay," Carlos says.

"Okay." Raene finally stops, and Carlos stops at her side. She doesn't look at him, staring directly in front of her and taking a deep breath. "Carlos… understand that I am doing everything I can to help everyone involved. You are not the only one who wants Cecil back. And this particular situation… it…" her eyes go to the floor. "It takes precedence over other situations that… I… may feel more personally involved in."

She looks up at Carlos, and it's like she's trying to make him understand. "I have to do what is best for everyone. Even if that means…" she trails off.

Carlos puts a hand on her arm. "I understand," he says, very quietly.

Raene bites her lip and nods. "Okay." She looks forward. "Okay." She starts walking. "You can return to your room… or… whatever you want to do. Just remember what our plan is."

She turns the corner and she's gone. Carlos turns and walks away from her. Even though most of his head is still running about Cecil and Cecil and Cecil, another part of his head is quieter, now. He wonders if anyone else even knows what Raene has given up for them.

He wonders, of the two of them, who the brave one really is.

-oOo-

reviews are the only thing keeping me accountable for writing more. :)

thanks for reading!

~phoenix