Chapter Eighty Two: Relocate
(I apologize for the long wait. I am still writing this. We had a death in the family, after a long fight with cancer, and that is my only excuse)
Chloe couldn't help but feel a little annoyed as Tony appeared to mentally step out of the meeting. Not that they were actually talking about anything important, per se, but it was the principle of the matter. He hadn't so much as said an "excuse me" or anything, just tapped his earpiece and zoned out from the rest of the meeting. Whatever it was that had attracted his attention had better be important, she decided. If not, Avenger or not, she'd let him have it.
A thoughtful expression on his face, Jack sat back in his chair, making it swivel back and forth. He was no stranger to sudden interruptions and felt none of the same feelings the detective obviously did. It was written all over her face, after all. But, while he waited for Tony to finish up whatever it was he was doing, the rest of the room had gone silent. At least the Avenger had had the good sense to head into a corner of the room for whatever phone call had interrupted things.
Having been in any a situation when time was of the essence, the space captain knew the best thing they could do, until either his team or someone else's was able to follow the money, was to take whatever leads they could get. He glanced over at Lucifer, who's expression was unreadable, and then at the other three in the room, GoGo, Honey Lemon, and Ella. The two former had poker expressions while Ella tried to do the same but failed miserably. It was kind of cute in a way.
After what felt like forever, but really was only a minute or two, Tony rejoined those gathered around the conference table. "That was JARVIS. Apparently Hiro's somehow managed to track the general location of our terrorists."
Sounds of surprise arose from various parts of the table as this information was digested. But, after the teen's recent abnormalities, it wasn't as shocking as it could have been.
"Dare I ask how?" Chloe spoke up, not sure if she really wanted to know or not. Either the kid had had another vision or something else had happened. There was still just the hint of a niggling doubt he might know more than he let on in the back of her mind.
Tony reclaimed his chair and swiveled around to face the center of the table. "I have no idea," he admitted. "Apparently he needs me there to pinpoint a more exact location." Technically speaking, Tony wasn't needed, just his lab, but he wasn't about to let Hiro, let alone Loki, be alone in that space. One never knew what might happen, even with JARVIS keeping an eye on things.
"Perhaps we should relocate to Tony's estate?" Lucifer suggested.
With lips pursed, Tony contemplated having to cater to all the adults in the room. It wasn't that he didn't have room, but there was no way he was going to let any of them into his lab, minus Honey Lemon and GoGo. There were too many sensitive things in there to let strangers see them.
Seeing the look on Tony's face, Jack stood from his chair. "I don't think there's a need for us all to go," he stated. "I'm sure some of us have things we need to finish up here, but I agree that finding out the exact location of these people is a priority. That said, I think only those staying at Tony's place should go. The rest of us have a lot to prepare in the meantime."
Ella's face fell at that announcement. She could understand why Jack might want Chloe and Lucifer to stay at the precinct. There really was a lot to get done, but she'd done about all she could in her little lab, unless something new showed up in her lap. The bomb fragments from the three locations were at the bomb squad labs, and looked like they wouldn't afford any new clues. They only needed to confirm they came from the same source, which was pretty obvious as far as she was concerned. "Can I go?" she asked in a small voice, almost hesitating to speak at all.
Chloe couldn't help but look her way, reminded of a shy little girl hoping to get a special favor. Her lips narrowed, though she really had no desire to go back to Tony's estate unless she had to. It wasn't up to her anyway, but she tried to think of anything the evidence tech might need to do to help get things ready. She kept drawing blanks and so didn't say anything.
"Yes, why doesn't Ella tag along?" Lucifer wondered, giving Jack a look, hoping he'd take the hint. It would be a good idea to have at least one of them there in the off chance the Big Heroes decided to go in on their own. Not that he exactly expected it, but Loki might encourage them to, even though the god of mischief knew the risks. If he were in a such a position, he'd be tempted to go in guns blazing, not caring who got in the way.
The air in Tony's lungs slowly escaped through his mouth as he contemplated the request. Out of all those present, Ella was the least likely to get in his way or question what was going on. Or so he hoped. And since even Lucifer was saying something, he knew he needed to do something to placate them. "Fine," he said, arms folded over his chest. "But we're leaving in five minutes so you'd better be out in the garage before then." That said, he excused himself to visit the little boy's room before heading out.
The drive back to the mansion wasn't too bad, all things considered. Happy merely had to avoid the areas where the bombs had gone off the day before. Once more, like a moth to the flame, too many people were curious about the police tape and vehicles holding them back. At least it left other avenues clear for them to travel, those who'd been evacuated the day before not quite getting the all clear to return to their homes just yet. Safety first.
Finally, after what felt like forever, the car drove up to the estate, checking in at the gate with all its passengers in tow. The chauffer pulled up to the entrance and got out, opening the door for Tony, followed by the girls, who sat in the back. Honey Lemon got out first, followed by GoGo and Ella. The former two stretched before following their host into the house. Happy, as soon as the area was clear, got back in the car and drove it to the garage.
"All right, JARVIS," Tony called out as soon as he'd entered the abode, "where are they are?"
There was a moment of silence while JARVIS scanned the three entering behind his creator. "Hiro and his companions are in the kitchen," he informed. "Would you like me to inform them of your arrival?"
But Tony waved a hand. "Not necessary. They probably heard my voice already. And if they didn't, Baymax probably alerted them."
"Indeed."
Not bothering to wait for the others, the billionaire continued on towards the kitchen, where he found Hiro, Cass, Kally, Loki, Fred, and Wasabi snacking on some cheese and crackers. He stopped just inside the doorway, noting they all looked much better than they had the night before, especially Hiro. The kid actually had some decent color on him, though he still looked tired. "I understand you've had another vision," he stated without preamble, looking directly at Hiro. He did his best to ignore Loki's presence, even if he was in the bodyguard guise, noting Baymax wasn't actually in the room.
Hiro looked up from selecting another piece of cheese, setting his cracker down on a napkin. "Not exactly," he corrected. "Guided meditation. I was able to follow the energy of one of the people from the bomber group to a location in the hills north of us. Well, not an exact location, like on a map or anything, but I think if I can see a 3D map of the area in question, I can pinpoint the immediate area."
Resisting the urge to press a hand against his temple, Tony took a few more steps into the room. "You think?" Just like their previous adventures, there were too many unknowns up in the air.
"That's why JARVIS had us wait. He told me the only real area in here that I could do that is in your lab," Hiro confessed. "And while you did give me access to it yesterday, I didn't think you'd want me, or anyone else, going down there without supervision."
You got that right, Tony thought to himself. He especially didn't want specific individuals in there, but that thought didn't bear thinking. Hiro had obviously taken into consideration the variables and he couldn't fault him for not wanting to get Tony's hair any more on edge. "Good thinking," he said instead as he moved further into the room, far enough he could snag some of the crackers and cheese.
GoGo, Honey, and a somewhat hesitant Ella, entered the room behind him, the two college girls heading directly to the food while Ella hung back. "So we're finally getting somewhere," the adrenaline junky commented as she picked a piece of cheese that had peppers in it.
Cass and Loki exchanged glances. It was true they'd been at a bit of a standstill after the previous day's events. It almost felt like the morning had stretched into forever while they waited. But that wasn't to say that taking a break from the whirlwind events hadn't been warranted. Cass had more than enjoyed Loki's company while the others were otherwise occupied.
While not quite lunch time, Fred chowed down like hadn't eaten in some time. Next to him, Wasabi was much more careful about how much he put into his mouth, and only looked at his companion with some disdain when the mascot spoke with a mouthful of food. "So, when are we going to go look at this awesome map JARVIS can create?"
Across from him, Kally rolled her eyes. For someone who came from a rich upbringing, Fred certainly didn't act the expected way, though she was sure she should be used to it by now. "How about we let everyone have a minute to take off their shoes and relax a little?" she suggested, noticing Ella still hadn't joined everyone at the table.
Realizing Kally meant her, Ella started from staring and made her way over to Honey's side. "I wasn't sure if was allowed to join in," she admitted, a bit sheepish in tone. She gingerly took a cracker and some cheese.
Tony shrugged. It couldn't be helped, and she was technically a guest. "Help yourself," he said instead, debating on just how many of the current people there he should let into the lab. Hiro was a no brainer. Loki would likely follow no matter what protests he made, and since Ella didn't know Loki was actually a Norse god, it probably would be wise not to press the issue. Wasabi would probably pass, but he wasn't sure about the others.
Going to the fridge, the billionaire took out a carton of juice and found a glass to pour some into. He quickly downed it, debating adding some form of alcohol to it before pushing that thought aside. It was still a bit early for that. And they needed all their wits about them, so he settled with a second glass before returning the container to the fridge.
Cass was the first to move away from the table. "I think I'm going to go soak in the tub," she stated, moving stiffly due to her knee braces. She didn't feel she should move about without them just yet.
"Do you need any help?" Honey inquired, aware that the proprietress might need some assistance getting in and out of the porcelain vessel. When Cass didn't protest, she followed, all thoughts on keeping things in propriety as much as possible.
GoGo moved away from the table as well. "I think we might want to tune up our gear," she said. "At least those of us not doing other things." She glanced meaningfully at Kally and Fred.
"I'm going to go lie down," Wasabi stated, knowing full well he wasn't going to participate in any further hero activities until he'd fully recovered. He left the room, heading to his assigned space.
When Fred didn't immediately follow GoGo's hint, she grabbed him by the collar, half dragging him out of the room. But Fred didn't seem to mind, a sheepish grin on his face as he only slightly stumbled behind her. He made a motion for Kally to follow, gratified when she took the hint.
Hiro finished his glass of water, setting it in the dishwasher next to the sink. He then brushed off any remaining crumbs before glancing over at Loki, then at Tony. "Guess we'd better get this over with," he said, feeling more chipper about this exercise than he had previous ones.
It took Ella a moment to realize everyone was breaking up into their respective groups. She quickly snatched one more cracker, along with some cheese, before following Tony, Hiro, and Loki out of the room and towards the lab.
Ella's eyes all but popped out when she first entered Tony's lab. The usual equipment was there, work table, computer, sheets of data and drawings, along with a bunch of equipment she didn't immediately recognize. All the same, the size was just as proportionate as the rest of the mansion. And some of the machines moved of their own accord. One was cleaning the area with some compressed air coming out of a hose.
Before she could get too involved in trying to identify everything in the room, Tony cleared his throat and she rejoined the others around a large worktable with what looked to be a glass top. "Sorry," she breathed, sticking her hands behind her back to stave off any temptation.
"JARVIS, pull up a 3D map of the area," Tony instructed. He leaned back, one hand thoughtfully at his chin as the image came into being. Like a ghost, it was clear, allowing sight of anything on the other side of it. "Okay, now let's see if we can figure this out."
Hiro scrunched up his lips as he contemplated the digital image before them. "You know, it would be so much easier if I could actually be in the middle of everything. Think the table can hold me?"
The billionaire rolled his eyes. "JARVIS, transfer the projection to the floor. We don't need any accidents." The AI butler quickly made the change, using several wall projectors set around the area, building a 3D model around them.
Feeling more in his element, Hiro stepped into the middle of the projection, orienting himself with their current location on the map. He closed his eyes, mentally pulling up the images from his earlier meditations. The more he practiced, the easier it became. Once sure he had the route fixed firmly in his mind, he opened his eyes again, waving his arms like he would in a virtual reality game.
The map moved with Hiro's motions, zooming around him in a simulated fashion. At one point, the teen pushed his hands towards the ground, hoping JARVIS understood he meant to have the image shrink down to something he could see more from a higher perspective while still being in the midst of it. His hopes were met and he soon focused on just moving things around, trying to follow the path his mental journey had shown him.
Standing back during all of this, Tony, Loki, and Ella couldn't help but watch in breathless anticipation. There were only a few moments of hesitation here and there, but Hiro seemed sure of his motions as he commanded the map around him. Soon they saw the streets change from city to city, and then move up into the mountains, using a dirt road. And then it all stopped as Hiro held his hands up in a gesture meant to freeze the image.
"There," Hiro said, pointing at what appeared to be a small clearing in the trees. He had closed his eyes again, mentally overlaying the images in his head, before opening them again. "They've made some kind of camp right there."
Tony walked around the map, careful to not disturb it, though he knew JARVIS wouldn't allow the projection to move around now that they had pinpointed a location. "JARVIS, I need coordinates and current satellite images for that area."
"Sir," JARVIS responded, pulling up the requested data. Another image settled over the current one, this one in blue, with the difference in red outlines. And, from all appearances, it did look like some kind of camp was in the middle of nowhere.
Ella took a few steps closer, eyes wide in awe. "Almost looks like one of those military camps you see in movies," she commented, not quite entering the projection field.
"Makes sense," Loki commented in his deeper bodyguard voice. "These people seem to have operated with some sense of military order."
Contemplating the map, Tony slowly circled the parameter. "This is going to be tricky," he admitted. "Any air support will give us away." He didn't mention out loud that he and Hiro's team could probably get past that without any trouble, choosing to refer to a larger party for Ella's sake. "We'll have to find a way to surround them."
"You could always send a small drone," Hiro supplied as he carefully removed himself from the map area. "Nothing too obvious, but large enough to capture some footage from inside the camp."
But Tony shook his head. "I think the best we're going to get is watching them via satellite. And even that will be tricky. Whoever these people are, they've got some high tech on their side, and someone with decent hacking skills. Wouldn't surprise me if they were picky-bagging the satellite as we speak."
"They do," JARVIS confirmed. "They tried to mask their signature with a complex algorithm. Nothing I can't handle."
That brought a smile to Tony's lips. "Think you could mask our presence from prying eyes?"
"Of course, sir."
JARVIS didn't even sound smug, which impressed Ella no end. "We need to let the others know," she spoke up. "Jack will want to make a plan." She didn't take her eyes off the image as she spoke. Part of her wondered if she could convince Stark to donate some of the same tech to the department so she could play with it later.
Reminded of the other players in this game, Tony released an inward sigh. Part of him wished the other Avengers were there, but they were busy elsewhere. He'd have to put up with Jack and the Detective a little longer. "Let's get this over with," he said as he headed towards the lab door, not bothering to see if the others were following or not, though he could hear them turn to follow him.