A/N: Cross-posted from SB
Chapter 1: Inquisition
September 19, 2014
Robin walked alongside Hannah in the tight corridors of the New York PRT headquarters. The entire building was swarming with troopers today, which, while he was sure was nothing unusual for the place, had been enough to dampen his anxiety a bit and induce a vague sense of security and normalcy in him before they had started their walk. Not that he believed the troopers would, in any form, be effective against what they would face here, just that their presence acknowledged the gravity of their appointment, making the situation a little less surreal.
Now, as they walked down the stairs in silence toward the location of the holding cells, all sense of security vaporized. Hannah beside him walked with a casual gait, confidently, holding her papers as if they contained nothing important, her power had stabilized in the form of a machete she was holding in her left hand. For Robin though, he felt his boots grow heavier with each passing moment, the further they went the harder it appeared to become to continue. He could almost feel the tension in the air intensifying, although he wasn't quite sure if it was just his imagination or if some of the people he passed were aware of the situation or perhaps if they sensed the danger on an instinctual level. His military discipline was the only thing that let him walk steadily forward and it was the only thing that let him assume a calm expression and plaster a smile on his face when they reached the trooper standing guard to the door.
The trooper nodded and held the door to the underground holding facility open for them. They walked inside and the door closed behind them soundlessly. Robin knew that this entire section of the building was reinforced with whatever advanced materials and tinker-tech the PRT leadership could get their hands on, not that the fact inspired any confidence today. Their steps echoed in the silence. The air inside had a suffocating quality to it and he felt a sense of impending doom, but he forced himself forward.
They reached his destination. He shot a glance at Hannah and whispered "Good luck." before turning and opening the door to walk inside, not pausing for her response.
The quiet conversation ceased as he entered the small room and closed the door behind himself. Director Williams was facing a monitor in front of him. He straightened up as he noticed Robin.
"Velocity." the man greeted.
"Director." Robin responded as he shook the offered hand.
"It's good to have you here." a feminine voice spoke from the direction of the monitor. Robin turned to face it. The screen was split between the smiling avatar of Dragon, the greatest tinker in the world and the severe face of a middle-aged man whom he quickly recognized as the chief director.
"Dragon, Chief director." he nodded at the display. "Velocity," the man acknowledged "since we're all here, I believe we should start."
And with that, Robin finally turned to the one-way mirror at the other side of the room. His reaction wasn't nearly as strong as he had anticipated, if anything, seeing her sitting there calmed his nerves a bit. The nineteen-year-old sat in a metal chair with a relaxed expression on her face, she had the same curly black hair he remembered from the horrific memory, although the pair of glasses were missing. She didn't look one day older than her image in his memories but other than that, he saw nothing of the force of nature that had haunted his nightmares for years.
He reflected that perhaps somewhere along the line his mind had exaggerated her features, turning her appearance into a monster of biblical proportions instead of the young woman that she looked. Still, he knew better than anybody how dangerous she truly was. He observed that her hands weren't cuffed to the table, he supposed they wanted to avoid further antagonizing her if they could help it, and handcuffs would be pointless anyway.
Hannah opened the door to the interrogation room, the girl didn't react, not turning to see who had entered the room. He waited tensely. The silence was only broken when Hannah took her seat on the opposite side of the girl and put her machete down on the side of the table.
"Miss Militia?" the girl asked, her words broadcasted into the small room the director and him occupied. The minute rise of her eyebrows was the only indicator of her surprise. "I think your presence constitutes a conflict of interest." she continued in monotone, faint amusement coloring her face.
Hannah stared at the girl for a moment, before assuming a placid expression, "They thought a more familiar face would make you more… amicable." she replied.
It was risky to be so forthcoming with the girl but Robin understood the value of building trust at this stage, and at the moment he was willing to trust Hannah's judgement.
"Huh," the girl spoke, nonchalantly accepting Hannah's admission of the PRT's manipulative behavior. She considered Hannah for a long moment, "Well Miss Militia, what can I do for you?" she asked without inflections.
Hannah's eyes twitched a little "Would you mind if I called you by your real name?"
"Not at all." the girl replied with a smirk out of tune with her tone.
Hannah nodded, glanced down, then took a deep breath and set the papers she was carrying on the table, "Well Taylor, the U.S. government is willing to offer you a new identity and if you are willing to accept, a job with a reasonably high pay."
This was their chance to solve a major national security issue if everything went well, and Robin hoped for everyone's sake that it would go well. One of the chief reasons he was here was to warn others if the girl turned hostile since he was the only person they knew of who had seen the process and lived, and he didn't wish to repeat that experience.
This time the girl's eyebrows noticeably shot up. "Really?"
"Really." Hannah repeated.
"Hmmm" the girl leaned forward, putting her elbows on the table, her face took on a thoughtful expression. After a moment she said "and what would I give in exchange?"
Hannah blinked, "You would be overseen by the PRT leadership." she answered in a practiced manner.
"Ah," the girl tilted her head, eyes turning to stare at the wall behind Hannah "quite straightforward."
She glanced back at Hannah, "Then, am I correct to assume you mean I would be under constant surveillance?"
Hannah's face twitched again and she swallowed, "I think that you can understand that is a reasonable measure considering the circumstances."
"No no, of course" the girl replied with a wave of her hand. "It's understandable."
The room descended into silence again as the girl contemplated things. Robin looked around, he could see the director staring at the one-way mirror with consternation. Dragon and the Chief director were also silently observing the exchange so far, from the cameras inside the interrogation room he supposed.
"And what is this… job you are offering?" the girl's question drew his attention back to the interrogation room.
Hannah took a breath "You would be an independent contractor to the PRT, you will receive a set amount of money each month regardless of any other factors. The PRT might ask you to do missions for them. They are entirely optional, the payment for those missions will be considered a bonus in addition to your monthly pay." she said as quickly as she could get the words out, "You can read the details here." She finished, finally having made her pitch, she pushed the papers toward the girl.
The girl didn't look at the papers, instead choosing to lean back in her chair. For a moment Robin imagined he could see a malevolent glint in her eyes, but an instant later it was not there. The girl bit her lip and waited a moment longer.
"How have you been, Miss Militia?" she finally asked.
Hannah frowned "I'm sorry?"
The girl arched an eyebrow "How has life treated you these past few years?" she inquired in her monotonic voice as if it was the most normal thing to ask.
"I…" Hannah paused, "I have been well, thank you." she continued, confusion apparent in her voice.
They stared at each other for a moment.
"Well?" the girl prompted.
"Yes?" Hannah gave her a questioning look.
The girl sighed audibly. The motion looked unnatural, imperfectly executed. Like a scene performed by a mediocre actor, it did not look like an involuntary act but something done for the benefit of an audience. "Aren't you going to ask how I have been?"
Hannah stared at the girl then cleared her throat, "I'm sorry, how… have you been, Taylor?" she asked, her tone a bit forced.
"Oh you know, here and there, I've felt much better recently though." the girl said.
"Good to know." Hannah replied.
The girl stared a Hannah a moment longer before looking down at her machete on the table.
"Tell me, Miss Militia," she began, pausing to tilt her head backwards as she leaned back even more, "you're a Protectorate hero, right?"
"Yes?" Hannah replied after a beat.
"Why is that?" the girl asked as she stared at the ceiling.
"Why am I a hero?"
"Yes, that."
"Well," Hannah took a breath, visibly more relaxed in her role "to be entirely honest, I can't give you a clear and concise answer besides what anyone else would tell you. I want to help people, make the world slightly bett—"
"No," the girl interrupted, raising her head to stare Hannah in the eyes again, "What I'm asking is why work for the Protectorate?"
Hannah stopped for a second. "Well," she started slowly "What would you propose? They are the biggest heroic organization in this part of the world and they are sponsored by the government to enforce laws and fight criminal elements."
The girl hummed noncommittally, her fingers tapping the table. She licked her lips.
"Tell me, what happens if I refuse?" she asked.
"Pardon?" Hannah replied, nonplussed at the non-sequitur.
"If I don't want government oversight, what if I don't accept your offer?" the girl continued.
Robin felt his heartbeats accelerating.
Hannah visibly steeled herself "Then your fate will be decided in a court of law."
The director beside him put a hand to his face, Robin couldn't blame the man, maybe absolute honesty was not the best way to deal with this situation after all.
"Should I intervene?" Dragon said.
"No, it's too late for that. Let it play out." the chief director replied.
The girl quirked an eyebrow as she stared at Hannah. Hannah held her gaze. Both stayed silent for a long moment. Then just as the silence stretched long enough to become uncomfortable, the girl spoke.
"You know Miss Militia, to be perfectly honest, I'm relieved a bit."
Hannah's face took a visibly concerned expression "I'm sorry?"
The girl pushed her chair back with a screeching noise and stood up, she threw a glance at the one-way mirror, then she started pacing in the room, only looking down in the process. The sound of her steps echoed while everyone else, inside and outside the room, stared at her.
After an interminably long time she started speaking, still not looking anywhere but down. "A couple years ago, when I was in high school there were three girls that made my life a living hell for more than a year and a half."
She stopped and looked at Hannah, who after a second, looked distinctly uncomfortable. Robin could guess at the sort of event the girl was leading up to, considering where and how he had last seen her.
"The details are irrelevant now," the girl continued as she resumed her pacing "it was a prolonged bullying campaign if you will, what matters is that they caused my trigger event."
She stopped and looked at Hannah again, at seeing her disturbed expression she gave a slightly unsettling giggle. "Now now, wait. We haven't gotten to the good part yet."
The girl turned and slowly walked around the table. Hannah stilled in her seat at the girl's approach.
The girl continued her walk until she was right behind Hannah's seat. Putting her hands on the back of the chair, she leaned over Hannah, speaking quietly in her ear. The microphone on her could still transmit just enough that they could understand the girl without straining.
"Now those three girls, insignificant people really. Nobody you would recognize of course. Still, I feel like I need to reveal their identities to someone, to lift a weight off of my shoulders, you know?" She whispered in her ear as she grinned.
Hannah sat frozen in place, her eyes darting first to her machete then to the one-way mirror, she was so close to the girl that even though everyone else still had the chance to evacuate if she turned hostile, Hannah would be dead before she knew it.
"The first was Emma Barnes, my former best friend. Such tragedy, don't you think?" she whispered as mania leaked into her voice. "The second, the brute of the group" she paused theatrically as she stared intently at Hannah "was Sophia Hess." She finished.
Hannah's eyes grew wide. The girl nodded to herself as she watched Hannah's reaction.
Robin's blood ran cold. He felt as though the bottom had dropped out of his stomach, the other people in the room didn't say anything, he supposed they were too mesmerized by the exchange to talk. In hindsight this had clearly been a bad idea, they should have sent a stranger to talk to the girl, familiar face be damned. They would be lucky if Hannah left the place in one piece.
Meanwhile the girl walked around the table back to her previous place. She leaned against her chair, leaving Hannah to perceptibly relax on the other side. The girl looked at the one-way mirror and her face took on a dissatisfied look.
"And with that reveal you wouldn't be interested in the third person. That's fine I suppose, she doesn't deserve to be remembered anyway." she turned to Hannah again.
"So, I'm sure that you can imagine my surprise when I finally found out that one prominent tormentor of mine was a Ward, a Ward under your care, I believe." She continued.
There was a sharp intake of breath from the director beside Robin.
"So," the girl grinned again, her voice losing the manic energy at the same time, "I'm comforted, relieved really. Because hearing you talk here, I can conclude with a reasonable amount of certainty that you at least held no malicious intent."
Robin felt more disturbed than relieved at the girl's declaration. Still it sounded sincere enough.
She paused and assumed a more serious expression.
"No, you are just incompetent. It was only just your sheer incompetence that led to the disaster in the Bay, Miss Militia. I think you should actually be proud of that. I mean, yes, in a way the entire thing was much more your fault than mine," she tapped a finger on the chair.
"but at the end of the day I don't believe you would or should be convicted in court of law for it, hmm?" the girl asked with an almost playful smile.
Hannah looked more than a little shaken, it took her a moment to compose herself. She cleared her throat "Do you have any evidence?" she asked, her voice wavering.
The girl gave a bark of laughter "Really, Hannah? What? Are you going to arrest them? Drag their remains through court proceedings?" she asked, "that's going to be a little difficult, don't you think?"
Hannah didn't give any visible reaction to the girl casually using her real name, perhaps she was too shaken to care, perhaps she didn't even notice the fact. She started to speak but the girl interrupted her with a wave of her hand.
"Now, I think you need to step out so I can properly read over your proposal."
The girl walked toward the table and took the papers, she indicated them to Hannah with a shake.
Hannah sat there stunned for a moment.
"Tell her to walk out" the chief director said.
A moment later Dragon relayed the message to Hannah, waking her out of her stupor.
"Alright" she said as she stood, taking her machete and walking toward the door.
"Before you go" the girl started. Hannah paused at the door, not turning to look at the girl, "see if they have some ice cream?"
"Sure." Hannah replied before promptly exiting the room.