Although Owen didn't reply to the team's many calls, the rogues kept themselves busy over the next week. Birkhoff beefed up Shadowbot's and Shadownet's code to scan for Division's and Gogol's movements. Alex carefully poked around Division to see if she could gain any intel on the black boxes. And Michael and Nikita trained, gathered new equipment and weapons, restocked their supplies, and talked. The two talked about their relationship and their possible future together. They tried not to get too far ahead of themselves, yet they both agreed they'd be together for a long time. Their relationship was very real and very serious.
As time went on, and the team still hadn't heard from Owen, they started to consider a mission to investigate. Michael and Nikita would fly to London while Birkhoff attempted to track down their missing team member. Either something terrible had happened to him, or he was ignoring them on purpose. They honestly didn't know which was worse. They simply had to figure everything out and move on, hopefully as a cohesive team. To survive their war, the rogues needed as much help as they could receive. They needed to support one another and not dissolve into any in-fighting. The former had so far been a lot easier than the latter.
Yet the team of rogues was getting better. They were definitely talking more, except for Owen. They were soon done waiting for him- or for disaster to strike. They were going to get ahead of things for once. Birkhoff scoured his computer, planning to locate Owen as the others prepared to fly out. It'd be impossible to find a former Guardian and Cleaner, but he had a burner phone from the team. The hacker could track that if it was turned on. It wasn't. Birkhoff was deeply confused about that, until he heard the door open. Instantly, he whirled around and found at least one answer to his questions, "Owen? What the hell, man? You were supposed to call."
"On an unsecured line? I don't think so," Owen scoffed. Birkhoff stared at him, bewildered. He and Michael had given Owen a secure phone the last time they had met with him. They had also been calling it for weeks. All Owen had to do was call back. He didn't need to travel across the Atlantic just to give the team an update. He was wasting their time and a perfectly good cellphone. Yet none of that seemed to be on his mind. He was more concerned with checking over his shoulder and scrutinizing every inch of the safehouse. Before Birkhoff could question anything that was occurring, Owen moved onto another topic, "Where's Nikita?"
"In either hers or Michael's room. But I wouldn't go in there if I were you," As Owen took off down the hall, Birkhoff tried to warn him. Although it was still early in the morning, he doubted Michael and Nikita were asleep. Most of the time, they were up and eating breakfast by the time the hacker groggily stumbled into the kitchen. If he had already finished eating that morning and was working on his computer, then the couple was absolutely awake; they just wanted their alone time. No one should interrupt that. Who knew what kind of awkward horrors they might walk in on. And who knew what kind of shouting they might receive as a result.
Michael and Nikita had been awake for a while; they simply hadn't wanted to get out of bed. Both were so warm and comfortable curled under the blankets and in each other's arms. The two couldn't bear to separate just yet. It didn't help that when the couple had woken up with sleepy, dreamy smiles for one another, they just had to caress each other tenderly and kiss sweetly. Nikita and Michael hadn't stopped kissing or touching, hands and lips exploring soft, warm bodies. Honestly, they could spend forever like that. But they weren't afforded the luxury. Their problems called to them, "We should probably get out of bed."
"Why? We can waste an hour, or two…" Although Nikita knew Michael was right- they should perform some proactive efforts to bring their war to an end- she refused to get out of bed. She only wanted to kiss and touch her boyfriend. And maybe do a few other things. As she kissed Michael deeper and held to him tighter, he caught onto her dirtier thoughts. Gently, he laid Nikita against the pillows and pressed his body against hers. She moaned softly into their kiss. That finally spurred the two into passionate action, removing clothing and kissing feverishly.
To stave off the cold during the night, the couple had pulled on pajamas between sex and sleep. Yet, making out the way they did definitely heated them back up. Neither was content with peeling off their clothing slowly. The motions were just as hurried as their caresses had become. After so much time kissing and touching lightly, Michael and Nikita needed more immediately. However, also needing to constantly kiss and press their hips together caused the couple to only strip down to their underwear. It was taking way too long to get naked. Though, maybe that was a good thing. Because, as they moaned deeply, someone else said her name, "Nikita?"
The voice didn't belong to the only other person in the safehouse. It wasn't Birkhoff. Though, after walking in on the couple once, he was determined to never do that again; he wouldn't even approach a closed door if he knew they were behind it. Someone else had burst in- possibly an intruder who had managed to slip past Birkhoff. Michael and Nikita didn't wait to see who it was. They pulled their weapons and aimed them at their intruder. He was quick to pull out his weapon as well. Fortunately, no one shot. Once the panic settled, the couple realized their intruder was just Owen, "Owen? What are you doing here? You were supposed to call."
"What are you doing with him?" Ignoring Nikita's question, Owen waved his gun at Michael. Neither of the men dropped their weapons. Only Nikita did as she slowly approached Owen. She wasn't exactly sure what that was about, but she didn't want to figure it out then. She was more focused on trying to understand why Owen had burst into Michael's bedroom. Could he not have called like he had promised. Was he not content just talking to Birkhoff until the couple joined them. What was going on.
"What's it look like?" Not helping the situation, Michael huffed. Although Nikita had returned her gun to its place on her nightstand, he and Owen kept their sights on one another. They were all on the same team, so there was absolutely no need to point weapons at one another or to threaten one another. But Michael wouldn't drop his pistol unless Owen did first. The man had been acting so erratically lately, from his strange behavior the last time Birkhoff and Michael met with him, to his refusal to answer their calls. The team might not be able to trust him anymore. Michael certainly wasn't going to take that risk.
"Will both of you drop your guns?" Nikita, on the other hand, was fed up. She was going to play the 'who could trust who' game anymore. The team didn't have the time. They all had the common goal to kill Percy and burn Division. Nothing else should've mattered if they wanted to end their war quickly. Their goal should've been enough. Yet Michael and Owen wouldn't stop their pissing contest, or whatever the hell they were doing. If anything, they tightened their grip on their weapons and glared. Nikita snapped, "Down, boys, now!"
Slowly, Michael followed Nikita's demand. He took his gun off Owen and placed it back on his bedside table. He didn't take his eyes off Owen, however. The two men glared at one another until the former Guardian finally put his weapon away too. Nikita rolled her eyes. She honestly couldn't stand the two at the moment. They had understandably been contentious the first time they had met. But they were on the same team then. If Nikita could forgive and forget past events, then so could they. She shot Michael a look to get on that. He sighed and asked, "So I take it that you tracked down the Guardian?"
"To a specific borough. But I'm going to need help approaching him," Owen finally explained his presence to the rogues. Well, he partly explained. His information could've been a call or even a text. Flying all the way across the ocean just seemed like a massive waste of time. By the time the team traveled back to London, the Guardian could've moved. It wasn't that great of a possibility, but it was still a concern Owen should've considered. The team couldn't make mistakes when the black boxes were involved. Of all people, Owen should've known that.
"Great. Let's go," Regardless of what he was thinking, Nikita focused on simply getting ready, flying to London, and stealing the black box from the Guardian. Owen must've had his reasons for not calling. She was just going to trust what those were for the sake of destroying another black box. Besides, she and Michael were still standing in front of Owen in their underwear. They seriously needed to stop talking and get redressed. While the couple just pulled on their pajamas until they could properly get ready for the morning, Owen remained in the room. Despite Nikita's dismissal, he wasn't done.
"Just Nikita. You might spook him," Owen objected to both rogue agents following him. The two paused in their steps and cast each other a puzzled look. Sure, Owen had worked only with Nikita to save Ryan in Chile, so he was more used to her talents out in the field. But he knew both Michael and Nikita. He had seen them both in action, and he knew what both of them were capable of. It didn't make sense to only take Nikita. After all, her and Michael were a package deal. They were partners in every sense of the word.
"Where I go, he goes," Crossing her arms, Nikita dared Owen to contradict her. She could make a million arguments about why Michael had to go to London with them. First, they'd need all the muscle they could if they were going to face a Guardian. Second, Michael's were a perfect match for hers and Owen's. Third, he was way better at planning than they were; their tendency to improv was going to bite them in the ass someday. And so on and so forth. Michael was coming with. Nothing Owen could say could make Nikita change her mind.
Owen soon rolled his eyes and left the bedroom. Although his actions could say otherwise, he was smart enough to know when the argument was over. Nikita sighed and moved to finally get ready for the day. Michael, on the other hand, remained still. Unlike his girlfriend, he couldn't move past that conversation. There was something wrong with Owen- more than normal. However, Michael couldn't quite put his finger on it. He just knew that he had a bad feeling about the man, "I don't like him."
"Well, this isn't junior high school, so," Nikita teased Michael. He had no reason to dislike Owen. The former Guardian and Cleaner was trying to make up for his mistakes and be better than Division had made him, just like the rest of the team. Any petty reason Michael had for dislike Owen should be forgotten; the team wanted to stop their internal drama, after all. Yet as Nikita teased her boyfriend, he pouted. He wasn't going to easily get over the feeling in his gut. She softly smiled at him and kissed him gently. All she was asking of him was to try. That was all the rogues had to do; they had to try to do and be their best.
While the couple freshened up and changed clothes, Owen went to bother Birkhoff. The hacker had been busy attempting to understand Owen's motivations for suddenly showing up in the safehouse. Nothing he had said made sense. And nothing he continued to say made any sense. The former Cleaner made all sorts of demands for the hacker that he couldn't actually deliver on. Yes, his skills were unparalleled. But even he had limits; not everything was hackable. Owen was asking far too much of Birkhoff, yet he wouldn't understand that, "I don't have access to Division records. I can't get the Guardian's identity."
"What's going on? I thought you had it narrowed down," Finally joining the others, Nikita asked. Overhearing how Owen talked to Birkhoff, she was beginning to understand what Michael was so concerned about. Something was off with Owen. Maybe he was just stressed after the months of tracking a Guardian and a black box. Or maybe he was exhausted after all that travel and lack of sleep. She hoped it was only that; it was an easy fix. Anything else just might bring the team another wave of hell.
"I do. But if I had his identity, knowing where he hid the black box would be easier," Owen attempted to clarify. But, again, he was leaving out some of his thought processes. The rogues didn't know if that was accidental or on purpose. Michael was leaning towards on purpose, yet Nikita wanted to give Owen the benefit of the doubt. The team was in the business of helping one another, and Owen obviously needed their help. If they went along with his black box mission, maybe they could figure out what was wrong and help him.
"But, like I said. Although I can hack better than any of those goons in Division, I can't get personnel files. Especially if I don't want to tip our hand," Shaking his head for the umpteenth time, Birkhoff argued against Owen's plan. He would absolutely love to hack Division and steal all the information they needed. Yet hacking Division was far more complicated than hacking the CIA. It was also far more deadly. The team of rogues couldn't hack into the hellhole and live to their next mission. They had to keep using alternative means to gain their intel. They didn't ever get to do things the easy way.
"Could our mole do it?" Michael quietly asked Nikita. It didn't escape her notice that he purposefully didn't say Alex's name. Although the three rogues in the safehouse knew who she was, her identity had remained hidden from Owen. It wasn't as though they didn't actively tell him; he just hadn't been around when Michael and Birkhoff learned everything Nikita knew. They could've used their time then to catch Owen up, yet Michael chose not to. He still wouldn't trust the former Cleaner completely, not after all he had done.
"I can ask her to try. But I don't want her risking her life or her mission," Nikita almost just said Alex's name. They expected Owen to be honest with them, so the least they could do was be honest in return. But if Michael felt the need to not trust Owen with Alex's identity, then Nikita was going to trust his instinct. She had experienced Owen's lack of thought when it came to handling dangerous intel. He might've learned his lesson after the black box leak, but Nikita wouldn't take the risk with Alex. She should stay safe while the rogues endangered themselves, "We can investigate in London while Nerd works with our mole to get the intel. Sound good?"
Glancing between each other cautiously, the three men eventually agreed to Nikita's plan. She fought the urge to huff and roll her eyes. Honestly, things were easier when she was the difficult one in the group. She'd never thought she'd have to be the voice of reason on the team, especially when Michael had a clear head. But apparently, the men couldn't be trusted to make decisions. She had to spur them on and remind them what was really important, "Perfect. Let's destroy another black box."
