Our Poisonous Perspective
Part 1

Viper's lab was quiet. The kind of quiet that makes one's ears tingle with an eerie ring. Nothing made a sound besides Viper herself, but everyone knew she preferred it that way. Any other noise would distract her from working as efficiently as possible and, right now, she needed all the concentration she could afford. Directly in front of the chemist, laid out carefully and meticulously labeled on a lab bench, were at least three dozen jars and beakers filled to different increments. Unsurprisingly, all the containers held some form of poison or toxin. This was Viper's lab of afterall. She hadn't acquired her name from thin air.

"What am I missing…," Viper muttered to herself, tapping an irritated pen against the clipboard in her hand. She'd spent the better part of the day rapidly comparing poisons for a new Sova dart. The hunter had approached her during breakfast asking if she could come up with some starting schematics for a poison arrow. The idea, at first, seemed like a waste of time, but the more Sova pitched it, the more Viper enjoyed the idea of being able to melt her enemies from even farther away. And so, the chemist agreed to come up with something by the end of the day, but the task was proving to be more complex than she had originally thought.

"I need something that attacks slower, so it will survive being shot through the air…" Viper trailed off, walking around the lab bench to look at another set of poisons, "But won't be so slow that the enemy can still survive impact."

Viper wasn't talking to anyone in particular, just the empty walls of her lab. Brainstorming out loud was how geniuses worked, obviously. When the next few vials of toxins proved to pair poorly with Viper's notes, she groaned in frustration and slammed the clipboard down. The sound echoed around the noiseless room like a shout from the bottom of a mountain. She was becoming irritated with her own incompetence. Viper walked briskly away from the lab bench and back to her desk, swivelling the chair to face her computer. She pulled up a few reports she'd minimized earlier, and began scanning their familiar contents.

It was somewhat ironic that the reports she'd had Killjoy copy for her at the Kingdom base, were now actually doing what they were originally intended for; making new weapons. It was a good thing the knowledge was in Viper's hands and not ' since, regardless of his utter betrayal and eventual downfall, he was a very smart man. He knew what he was talking about.

"Species 032 - Nightshade: has been found to mix well with the venom from Specimen 005 - H. Suspectum's: salivary glands. Reactions so far are minimal, with corrosive attributes dwindling with air exposure. No notes on current human effectiveness," Viper reported out loud, again, to no one in particular. The research from office was proving to be less helpful than the chemist had originally thought. Viper had read and re-read the other scientist's notes about plant toxins, development of new mixtures, and other things at least fifty times, with no new ideas coming to mind.

She was reaching her limit of frustration when the cheerful beeps of her lab door rang out. Then, as quickly as they started, the beeps stopped and Viper's lab door hissed open. "Hallo, Viper! Sorry to barge in," Killjoy said, pulling one arm towards the other, the stretch causing a yawn to spill from the germans mouth. Her strides into the lab were familiar; casual. Killjoy didn't even look at Viper. Missing completely how the chemist's body stilled, hands hovering over her keyboard. "Brimstone really needs to stop sending me on back to back missions. I don't think my muscles can take it."

On a normal day, Viper could tolerate Killjoys' surprise visits. Ever since their mission together, the two of them had been spending a lot more time together, and that meant that Killjoy was in Viper's lab more often. Not that she minded. The german took to staying out of Vipers way, taking apart her bots at the small table near the door. Of course, a room didn't have Killjoy in it if she didn't stick her nose into everything so, everytime Viper spoke a concentrated thought out loud, the techie would comment on it. Viper knew it should have bothered her to be interrupted like that, but Killjoy often proved herself to be a true genius. Her insight was something Viper secretly treasured. She may have even liked the company, but that wasn't something she was willing to explore just yet. The point was, today, Viper couldn't let Killjoy stay.

"Hi." Viper replied simply, not looking up from her reports.

"Whatcha working on?" Killjoy asked, approaching Viper's desk, but not walking around it. She leaned against it, both arms holding her up.

"Something that needs my full attention." Viped answered pointedly, still never pulling her eyes away from the charts in documents. Killjoy was missing the hints.

"So it's important, Ja? Can I help?"

"No," was Viper's easy reply, the word coming out faster than she could even think about declining.

"Why not? You seem tense. And I bet I coul-"

"I am not tense." Viper cut in, exasperation slipping into her voice. The chemist finally looked up to meet Killjoy's eyes. "I'm just busy."

"Same thing," Killjoy responded, trying to peek over the monitor.

"Will you stop it?" Viper said, minimizing her reports again, "You can't just assume you are welcome into everything."

Killjoy's face fell and she took a step back from the desk, "I don't do that."

"You do, actually," Viper said, standing, "In fact, I never even gave you permission to come in here in the first place. That should be proof enough."

"But," Killjoy looked at the ground, "I've been coming to your lab for a awhile now. I thought-"

A loud, irritated laugh bubbled out of Viper's throat, cutting Killjoy off. She hadn't intended for the laugh to spill out, but she knew sympathy was not her strong suit. The Germans eyes steeled and she stomped over to Viper so she was looking at the shorter woman in her sharp, green eyes, "What is wrong with you today?"

"Nothing is wrong with-"

"Schwachsinn!" Killjoy butt in, "I know you're usually all distant and harsh, but never, ever like this." A pause. Killjoy's eyes narrowed, "Something's wrong."

Viper's jaw clenched and unclenched as Killjoy's eyes bore into hers. The german was being annoyingly adamant about this and it only fueled to annoy Viper more. "You don't know anything about me. So please stop acting like you do." Viper stepped around Killjoy and began walking back towards her vial covered lab bench.

"Are you serious right now?" Killjoy ground out, spinning around towards Viper's retreating form, "You're really going to just act like this? Like nothing has changed between us. Over what? Your ego?"

Viper's steps halted mid stride, surprised at the anger in Killjoy's voice. She'd never heard that from the german before. Not even in the heat of battle did Killjoys spark, her fun, ever leave her voice. Right now though? Viper didn't recognize that voice and it made her chest heavy. She continued walking, ignoring the other agent entirely.

"Answer me, Viper." Killjoy said, the words harsh, but with a trace of desperation sprinkled in.

Viper still didn't answer. She couldn't. It was stupid to humor this argument in the first place, let alone get emotional over it. She was ignoring Killjoy out of practicality. It wasn't because she was upset, hell, she wasn't even mad at Killjoy. She just didn't have time for this today. No distractions. It didn't matter that the familiarity of the german made her feel weird. Made her feel...scared?

No! No way. Not scared. Viper wasn't afraid of anything. Not since she was hot; too hot. Melted flesh; sick. Smokey eyes with burning lungs; can't breathe. Someone was screaming, no, they were begging. Too much black air and orange, tongue licked flames grabbing at her. Viper blinked and she was back in her lab, the horrid memories clinging to her mind like sweat. Her shoulders were frozen stiff with fear and Viper had to force her body to relax. She was in the lab with Killjoy and no longer about to burn alive.

"Fine. Unglaublich." Killjoy finally scoffed and stalked off towards the lab door. The metal slab hissed open and then, after a small delay, it hissed closed. There was no other sound.

Viper waited several breaths before turning towards the door. The chemist was half expecting Killjoy to still be standing there, arms crossed like calling Viper's bluff was all part of the plan. LIke she had noticed Viper's turmoil and plague ridden memories, but she wasn't there. Killjoy had really walked out of the lab. I've upset the little bear, Viper thought, wonderful.

Of course, she hadn't intended to say all the things she had. Since, if Viper was being honest, Killjoy was exceptionally good at guessing her emotions. The german did it without even trying. It was part of what Viper admired, and feared, about her. The chemist reached up and rubbed her eyes tiredly. If her exhaustion had been evident before Killjoy's visit, it was definitely more prevalent now.

"Let's go then," Viper said, deciding she needed to chase Killjoy down and fix this. Unfortunately, just as the chemist took a step, her lab door hissed open again. Much to Viper's disappointment, it was not her little bear coming back to make amends, but rather a familiar clean cut face bearing a blue X.

Sova was standing in the doorway, a bit surprised the door was open and not locked. "Isn't your door normally locked?" he asked, taking a cautious step inside.

Viper sighed heavily, knowing the Killjoy would have to wait now, and nodded at Sova. "Yes, but Killjoy just left and I think she forgot to secure it behind her."

"Ah. She must have left in a hurry then. I'm sorry if I interrupted."

"She did, but it was no fault of yours," Viper explained, waving Sova over to her computer, "Anyway, you're here about your poison arrow, yes?"

"Da. I was wondering how the progress was going."

"Let me show you what I have." Viper said, taking a seat at her desk again. She spoke with Sova for the next hour or so about poisons and their lethality. About trajectory and efficiency, but it was hard to commit. Killjoy was never far from Viper's mind and her thoughts often wandered to that hard, pleading look the german had given her. It made her feel heavy; contrite. Viper knew that Killjoy often put up with her hard exterior in exchange for their stolen moments together, but did that really make everything all better? Didn't Viper herself initiate this...this thing they were doing? The togetherness? The evidence clearly pointed to it. So why had she acted so cross?

"Viper?" Sova said, his white eyebrows furrowed.

The chemist blinked. "What did you say?" Viper asked, clearing her throat, "I didn't catch that last part, I apologize."

Sova chuckled and picked up the demonstrative arrow off the desk, "Don't worry about it. I think we should be done tonight, anyway."

"Are you certain?"

"Da." Sova said, standing, "You seem distracted or maybe just tired."

"It's both." Viper sighed, also rising from the desk, "Definitely both."

Sova laughed and shook his head, "When you said by the end of the day, you really meant it."

"Yes, I did. Experimental work is...my favorite." Viped conceded hesitantly, collecting her clipboard and some important documents, before joining Sova at the door. The two agents exited, and Viper was expecting Sova to leave right away, but the hunter stayed. He even stayed after Viper engaged the lock on her lab.

"I know we don't know each other very well," Sova started, gesturing to the hallway leading to the barracks, "But why not walk with me? You seem like you have more on your mind besides poison arrows."

Viper carefully considered Sova's offer. She loathed the idea of befriending people that were, ultimately, expendable, but she was a bit out of her element with the Killjoy situation. Perhaps letting Sova know a little wouldn't hurt? Besides, as far as Viper was concerned, she'd let Killjoy get close and the only harm it had ever done was to her sanity.

"There is," Viper offered, following Sova down the hallway, "I'm surprised you noticed,"

"I've got a really good eye, in case you hadn't noticed," Sova laughed, before clearing his throat and taking on a more serious tone, "But really, what troubles you?"

"As you may know, I am fantastic at science," Viper replied, before running a frustrated hand through her hair, "Like really good."

"We are in agreement there," Sova said, nodding, "Has something scientific happened?"

"Sadly, no. That would be much easier to deal with."

"Then, what?"

Viper's lips pulled into a grimace, "I've had the sudden realizations that….I am not so good with people."

"Ah. So this is about Killjoy?"

"I'd rather not get into specifics," Viper clarified sharply, sidestepping a forgotten office cart. It seemed even the highest government facilities lacked simple organizational skills.

Sova chuckled, unphased by Viper's harsh refusal, and continued following her down the hallway, "Konechno. Speak only what you wish to."

"Well," Viper started, unsure how to word her worries in a way that made sense, "I feel as if I'm connecting with people wrong; or rather...inefficient? In truth, I've never given the task much thought. But now…" Viper trailed off, sighing.

It wasn't that Sova couldn't know about her relationship with Killjoy. If anything, everyone in the whole damn base pretty much had a hunch about her and the eccentric, goofy genius. It wasn't hard to miss the looks, or the way Killjoy just gravitated to Viper's space when they were together. It was all pretty obvious. What really sealed the deal though was being caught in the act. One night, after a particularly rugged mission, a makeout session went a little too far on one of the kitchen counters. It had been reckless, sure, but Killjoy had insisted she "check for bruises" right then and there. It only made sense for someone to waltz in on them.

Of course, Viper hadn't cared in the slightest. She pitied the first person to ask her about it to her face. Killjoy enticed her enough to warrant a pass on being insufferable, but that didn't mean she was suddenly approachable. Which brought Viper's thoughts back to the hunter by her side.

Sova was kind enough; gentle in ways Viper never understood. His recruitment hadn't been anything extravagant as he's not a radiant, but regardless of that, he joined and fit in better than most. He killed when he had to, fought when he meant to, and sought to help when the option was available. Viper never thought he'd ever approach her, let alone be her crutch in a situation like this.

Sova followed the chemist down a flight of stairs leading to the barracks, passing a few more windows and offices along the way. Once at the main entrance, he held the door open for Viper before stepping in after her. "In Russia we have this saying," Sova began, stopping in front of one of the few wooden, apartment doors lining the hallway, "that I often fallback on in times of worry."

"Do tell," Viper replied, turning to unlock her quarters.

"Idti medlenneye, idti dal'she," Sova said, crossing his arms over his chest, "It means, go slower, get farther."

"And you think that helps me...how?"

"You are rushing to find a solution. Like with our arrow project. That might work for scientific discovery, but relationships are not so easy." Viper hummed in response, but said nothing as her key turned slowly in the lock mechanism. The tumblers clicked extra loudly in the empty hallway. Sova persisted, "Have you considered that maybe there is no right answer?"

"Obviously," Viper quipped, looking up to arch an eyebrow at the hunter, "Not every problem has a solution. Not every hypothesis is true. So? What of it?"

Sova held his hands up in surrender, "I meant no offense by asking, my friend. It's just that you seem awfully focused on walking some kind of right path."

"It's important that I do." Viper challenged.

"All the more reason to take it slow," Sova offered, smiling warmly before turning to retreat down the hallway, "Goodnight, Viper."

The chemist didn't reply, watching Sova leave a little stunned. It wasn't until the hunter was completely out of sight that she pushed heavily into her quarters. The room was dark and smelled sterile, just like it always did. The kitchen sink held a lone bowl and a tea kettle sat on the stove, just like they always did. Viper didn't know why she thought her space would feel different. She certainly felt different. Things happened that Viper hadn't expected. She could feel the start of a headache behind her eyes and she needed a shower and sleep before it could take root. She'd have plenty of time to think about the things. The thoughts weren't going anywhere. Especially the ones about a certain beanie wearing genius and the words of a wise hunter.

For the next two weeks, Killjoy avoided Viper like she had rabies, or something worse. She never returned to Viper's lab, or met with her after missions. Killjoy even made a point to eat specifically when Viper wasn't having her usual meals. The chemist only knew that because Sova had mentioned it during one of their arrow meetings.

The hunter, honestly, had become more of a constant in Viper's daily routine lately than Killjoy was and that was worrying. The one time Viper had attempted to confront Killjoy alone had proved futile. In fact, it backfired completely because she couldn't actually get into Killjoy's lab. The chemist was never given the password. Or...maybe she'd never asked for it. Anyway, Viper's attempts to convince Killjoy to let her in were met with silence or German words Viper couldn't decipher. Though she did catch the word 'snake' a couple times. Killjoy's point was being made clearer each day.

Needless to say, at the end of the third week Viper was starting to wonder if Killjoy would ever come around, seeing as the german was taking their small argument much harder than was, until the end of the fourth week, when something finally happened.

Viper was testing new poison mixtures in her lab, like she always did when she had down time, when the loud speaker directed all agents to the comm room. This was odd for a number of reasons because when mission assignments were normally given, they were done via PM or a simple phone call. To make a base wide announcement meant something was up. Most likely, something bad.

Sova found Viper right away when she arrived through the comm room doors. He looked grim and his gear was on. "Viper, Brimstone is looking for you."

"What's going on?" Viper asked, looking around the room. She couldn't remember the last time all the agents were in one place at the same time. Even the kitchen area held no more than half of the base's occupants at any one time. On the far side of the room, closest to the other set of double doors was Jett and Phoenix talking animatedly with their hands. Next to them was Cypher and he seemed less than thrilled to be in their conversation. In the middle of the room, surrounding the digital map and holograms was Omen, Sage, and Skye. The latter were listening intently to the ghost man point and explain things about the display. The rest of the other agents were scattered about talking amongst themselves, however, without realizing it, Viper was stuck on one particular agent. An agent she knew well.

Killjoy was chatting with Raze at one of the tables near the comm room window. The glass window spread across the entire right wall and overlooked the mountains. The best place to hide an undercover government organization was in the mountains, so here they were, nestled into a rocky, snow covered hillside.

The german looked the same as she always did. Puffy yellow jacket, green beanie, and a smile that lit up her face. Even her glasses and green tongue sneakers were the same. Viper couldn't place why this person of all people had been the one to peak her interest. It would have been so much easier to just ignore everyone. As if hearing her negative thoughts, Killjoy reached up to adjust her glasses, and her eyes found Vipers and for several breaths, their gazes held.

What passed across Killjoy's face was uncharacteristically hard and Viper felt a part of herself stiffen. Then Killjoy looked away, back towards the bomb expert showing off some sort of grenade launcher. At that moment, it sort of felt like Viper was looking in the mirror, or maybe just a really bad reflection. It was very unlike Killjoy to act like this, but Sova pulled Viper out of her thoughts.

"He's gone for the moment, but he'll be back," Sova explained, turning towards the room, "This has gotta be big."

"You think?" Viper drawled sarcastically, "When was the last time he called everyone here at once?"

"Very good point."

"Do you know anything else?"

Sova shook his head and returned his gaze to Viper, "No. Brim said everyone needed to be here. He went to fetch Reyna."

As if on queue, Reyna and Brimstone walked in through the double doors on the far side of the room. Phoenix and Jett moved aside quickly, then followed as Brim approached the middle console Omen had been explaining earlier. Viper didn't waste any time joining the gruff commander near the display with Sova close behind her.

"Ah, Viper, you're here. Great, now we can start." Brimstone said, pushing a flash drive into one of the many ports on the circular console. The images previously on the display flickered away and were replaced by several small video feeds. The footage was somewhat grainy, but otherwise completely intact. The other agents scattered around the room noticed the commotion and started to form a circle around the commander and console.

"What's going on?" Viper asked again, eyeing the videos skeptically. There was nothing out of the ordinary in them. There were a few brick city streets. There were some live footage broadcasts of frozen metal hallways. The last video was just a still image. A logo maybe? Viper didn't recognize it. The image depicted wings of some sort, but they were torn in several places. Behind the pair of wings was a black castle surrounded by thorns. That definitely signafied Kingdom was involved, but how? Viper's concern and curiosity doubled.

Brimstone touched the hologram of the image and blew it up for the room to see. He took a step back and met the gazes of everyone in the room before speaking, "We just received word that another organization is conspiring with Kingdom operatives on a fairly large scale."

"So they've made an ally?" Sage chimed in, her face crestfallen. She was standing next to Reyna who also looked a little upset, but probably for different reasons.

Brimstone merely nodded, "Afraid so, but that's not the worst of it. With that kind of man power, there are several speculations of possible attacks," Brimstone paused, his brow furrowing more before continuing, "On multiple of our protection sites."

"Multiple?" Omen asked, his dark voice gravely with concern, "How many is that?"

"All of them." Brimstone replied sternly, "This base included."

The room erupted in chatter at the revelation, but over the noise, Sova, who was still standing next to Viper, shouted, "How do they even know where to hit? Do they have spies?"

"Spies? Are you kidding? They can just blow up whatever, whenever. Why get a spy?" Jett retorted dryly.

"For once, I have to agree with Jett. Asking how is irrelevant," Cypher said, stepping forward, "We know where they will strike. That should be good enough."

"What if there is a rat among us?" Reyna sneered at the Moroccan man, taking a challenging step forward, "Do we not want to know how they've become so knowledgeable?"

"Reyna speaks true. A rat would be most troubling," Sage added, her hands clasped tightly together in front of her.

"This new organization would have to be absolutely brilliant to get that kind of data digitally," Killjoy said, gesturing to the logo enlarged on the middle console, "A spy seems like a more likely approach. It's less work."

Viper felt her stomach tighten at the sound of the germans voice. She didn't know why it was there, but she didn't have time to dawdle on it. The other agents around her were bickering about the odds a spy might be among them, but Viper was hardly listening. She was truly concerned, not so much about how, but why. The end goal of this "organization" was entirely unclear. Trying to decide on a spy was a horrible use of their time when their true motivation was left unclear. Viper rolled her eyes when Jett chimed in again about why everyone cared.

"You are all missing a very important point," Viper finally said, her voice loud and crisp. She was annoyed that the conversation was getting them no closer to solving the problem, "Have none of you considered their means to an end? Why have a spy at all if they have no reason? We need to know why."

The rest of the agents fell silent as Viper approached the hologram display and moved to expand a few video files. With them all much bigger now, it was easy enough to see how they correlated and where they differed. They were all in locations Valorant protected and they were all caught on camera. Which was odd. Viper was going to say so, when her favorite little genius spoke first.

"They're all being recorded. Like they wanted to be caught."

"Exactly my thoughts," Viper praised, offering a small smile to Killjoy. The german did not return it and Viper's face fell. Again, there was a tightness in her stomach and she quickly looked back towards the video feeds.

"Why do you think that's important?" Brimstone asked, arms crossed over his chest.

"It's important because, given how Kingdom operates, and this new 'secret' ally, doesn't it seem odd for us to catch them...everywhere?" Viper responded critically.

"I see at least ten other locations in these feeds alone that would have provided better coverage than the one our enemies are using," Omen added, moving his pointer finger from different angles in the video.

The room was once again silent with thought. All the agents seemed to be absorbing the information rather slowly, much to Viper's irritation. It wasn't rocket science to see that they wanted Valorant to catch them. To worry. To act rashly. Viper knew they were likely walking into some kind of trap.

"What do you suggest then?" Sage asked cautiously, her anxious energy still lingering in her body language. Reyna seemed to step closer to the healer instinctually.

"I actually have that already planned out," Brimstone interjected before Viper could answer. She rolled her eyes again as the commander pulled out his flash drive and reopened the map displays, scrolling through each as he spoke, "We need small teams to efficiently lock down our key areas, while everyone left protects this base."

"How small are we talking here?" Phoenix asked, "'Cause I could probably handle it by myself."

"We're looking at teams of probably three. No less than 2 in a smaller site." Brimstone corrected, crossing his arms again, "Three is safer though."

"I recommend someone for surveillance, attack, and defense if possible," Viper said, "That will cover all possible exploitations since these are very likely to be traps or decoys."

"Let's get this show on the road then," Jett exclaimed, hopping on the balls of her feet, "I'm tired of talking."

"We'll need to decide on 4 teams for the major cities," Brimstone explained, gesturing to the holographic map display, "We'll need agents in Ascent, Split, Icebox, and Haven. Anyone left will stay here to protect this base if our enemy is foolish enough to try anything."

"Sage and I can be the attack and defense for Ascent. Her walls will do nicely to funnel our foes right into my crosshair," Reyna purred out, her tone syrupy, yet deadly.

"I'll send K/O will you two for information. He'll pair well with your aggressive tactics," Brimstone offered, nodding approvingly.

"I'd like to take care of Haven if I could," Skye said, fingers hanging from the belt loops on her pants.

"I will assist her," Omen said, "They will be blind. And dead."

Raze whooped from where she was by Killjoy and gave a thumbs up, "Count me in as well."

"Alright. Haven is settled," Brimstone acknowledged, moving the map to show the secure site up north, "I think Icebox could be set with just two people since it's so small."

"That's our cue, pretty boy," Jett teased, poking Phoenix on his shoulder, "We can hold down the fort right?"

"Just as long as you don't hog all the fun," Phoenix joked back, "I'm definitely down."

"Brilliant. That just leaves Split in need of protection," Brimstone said, his eyes meeting Viper's across the center console, "Think you could lead that front, Doc?"

"Child's play," Viper replied coolly, "I'll see that it's done."

"I'll join as well," Killjoy pipped in, causing Viper to snap her head in that direction. Of course, the german wasn't looking at her, since she was still very much mad at the chemist, but the fact she spoke at all was pretty surprising. Was she worried that Viper couldn't handle it? No...that seemed unlike Killjoy. She'd always told Viper how amazing she was, which was obviously true, but then why ask to join at all?

"Sorry kid," Brimstone said, the heaviness of his voice bringing Viper out of her thoughts, "But your tech would be much better protecting the base."

"Brim, with all due respect, I don't wanna be left on the sidelines for this one. You know I'm useful!" Killjoy argued, her eyes only briefly flicking over to Viper before re-locking onto the commander.

Brimstone sighed and shook his head slowly, "The fact that you're useful is exactly why I need you here. We can lose these cities in an emergency, but this base cannot be compromised. You are the best defense we have."

"I will have to agree with the commander here as well," Viper felt herself say, the words falling out of her mouth faster than her brain could tell them not too. Killjoy's gaze was instantly on her and it was the same look from before, when they argued in the lab; angry and desperate.

"I don't think I was talking to you," Killjoy said, her tone biting.

"You weren't, no," Viper started, fighting the urge to meet Killjoy's anger with her own, "But this does concern me, so I have a right to speak."

"You don't make the decisions, so I'd argue that you don't."

Viper scoffed, "Please. I don't need Brimstone's permission to advise our missions."

"Can't advise if nobody cares to listen." Killjoy shot back.

"ENOUGH," Brimstone boomed, a hand reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose, "Save the lovers quarrel till after we deal with Kingdom, ok?" Viper rolled her eyes, but nodded. Killjoy kicked at the floor but also huffed out her approval. "Great. Killjoy, you are staying here. No discussion. I'll also stay and I'd ask Sova to stay as well."

"They will have nowhere to hide," Sova confirmed.

"As for Split, Cypher, would you accompany Viper?" Brimstone asked, eyeing the mostly silent camera man.

"It would be my pleasure," Cypher agreed.

"Perfect. I'll also send word for Yoru to meet you there. He was already on an assignment when these reports came in."

"Wonderful. They won't know what hit them," Viper said, letting out a small, sinister chuckle.

"Alright. You all have your assignments. Meet in the plane hangar an hour from now. Dismissed."

After Brimstone's dismissal, all the agents filed out of the comm room in a bit of a hurry. Killjoy was one of the first. Viper guessed she didn't want the chemist cornering her after their little disagreement in front of everyone. Perhaps she was even a little embarrassed. The thought made Viper frown. Her little bear was acting like...well...her. That wasn't right. Viper was the harsh one. The one who spit venom and glared at people. Killjoy was supposed to be none of those things. Her actions didn't make sense.

Viper wanted to go break into Killjoys lab right now and demand an explanation, but she was sure that wouldn't work. At least it hadn't last time. Perhaps the true solution to her confusion was in what Sova had said all those weeks ago. To be patient.

Killjoy was obviously hurting, even if Viper didn't understand why, but forcing the communication was widening the distance between them. Viper didn't wanna admit it, but she was starting to miss the smiles Killjoy only gave her. She just had to hope time would help her get them back…

When Viper's team finally landed in Split, nothing really appeared out of the ordinary. Cypher started right away with placing cameras and trip wires in key places. Yoru, on the other hand, scouted the further parts of the city for enemy sightings. That left Viper to actually guard the site.

She's already set up a wall for those who'd come in from overhead. But that left two entrances still. Hopefully her companions would come back before any fighting took place. This whole thing was one big waiting game. All the other agents would either be waiting or fighting, the latter being much more enjoyable.

"I hate waiting," Viper muttered, pacing in the elbow hallway.

"Talking to yourself, snakebite?" Cypher said from his spot behind cover.

"I'd be careful with nicknames if I were you," Viper growled back, choosing to ignore his question.

"Do you think we're going to be a target?"

"Who knows."

"Do you suspect our new enemies will show their faces?"

"Unlikely."

"Is there a plan?"

Viper clicked her tongue, annoyed, "Must you ask so many questions? We were at the same meeting."

Cypher sighed and stood to stretch his legs, "If you asked me, we'll probably be quiet all-"

"RAMP. LEFT SIDE." Yoru's voice shouted into Viper's earpiece, shattering the silence. Just in time, a wave of Kingdom foot soldiers pushed into the site. Cypher ducked just as a spray of bullets whizzed over his head.

"Ah shit," Cypher said, shooting his rifle over the box to stall the enemies. A few of them tumbled over in a heap.

Viper quickly retreated farther into elbow and shot her poison onto the ramps. The enemies started shrieking as their boots melted. Yoru joined them from overhead, stalling the enemies more as they tried to push heaven. Overall, the three of them were warding off the soldiers without breaking a sweat. That was until a sudden boom shook the ground under their feet. The first few shakes were small; barely more than a wobbling table. However, the ground continued to shake until it rattled Viper's brain to stand up. Cypher also couldn't remain crouched for long, tumbling from behind cover.

"Cypher!" Viper yelled, trying to warn the man he was exposed, but the enemies were faster. They swarmed him and pinned his limbs to the ground.

"Yoru, Cypher is compromised. Give up heaven for site retake." Viper said quickly into her earpiece. The teleporter's affirmative came as a quick ball of light overhead and Viper turned away as it flashed into a bright light. The enemies confusion was short lived as a spray of bullets took a bunch of them down right away, somehow, miraculously missing Cypher.

"Is that your best?" Yoru scoffed, jumping down and cleaning up the few wounded he hadn't killed originally with just a pistol. That left the site empty again.

"Thank you." Cypher grunted out, trying to stand.

"They could've sent 5 or 50 and we still would've won. Don't mention it," Yoru replied.

Viper came out from cover and snickered, "Sleeping on the job, Cypher? What will Brimstone say?"

"You saw nothing." Cypher grumbled, adjusting his hat and coat. He retrieved his rifle and started loading it, "What was that shaking?"

Viper's smirk fell and she shook her head, "I'm not sure. It felt big though."

"Is that what you guys felt?" Yoru said, pointing over the left wall where the enemies are poured in from.

Viper squinted as she tried to see what Yoru saw, "I don't see-" Then she saw it. A tower. Blinking red at the tippy top. It looked like a comm tower, but more complex. The steel beams were twisted, similar to DNA. From where the agents stood, the tower had to be no taller than a farmer's silo.

"I bet they drilled it into the ground," Cypher said, still loading his gun.

"But what in the hell is it?" Yoru asked, "Why put it up in the first place just for them all to die?"

"I'm going to go check it out," Viper answered, kneeling to grab a better weapon from one of the fallen soldiers, "Stay here in case they ambush us again. I'll be in touch."

Viper didn't wait for a response since she knew they'd obey. This was her area of expertise. Sure, she was no Killjoy, but she knew enough to make a full report about what happened. Maybe she'd even find something cool to tell her little genius about.

Killjoy had definitely been right about how boring protecting the base was. Her, Sova, and Brimstone waited half the day, then a full one before the commander had been satisfied enough to call off the stake outs.

She was now waiting in the hangar bay for Viper's plane to return from Split. The other planes, even the one with Raze on it, had arrived already and she was starting to worry. Of course, Killjoy had tried to force herself not to worry since she knew Viper wouldn't be standing in the plane hangar worried about her, but she couldn't stop her stomach from sinking. The feeling was growing increasingly more nauseating with each passing second.

"You are worried for Viper, yes?" A voice said from behind Killoy. She had come to know this voice over the last twenty four hours and was well aware of how genuine it's owner was. Sova had lots of kindness for everyone in the Valorant protocol, except maybe Cypher, but regardless it only made sense he'd notice her turmoil.

"No," Killjoy lied quickly, not wanting to have a heart to heart right now, "I'm just...enthralled...by all the plane models."

"You like planes?" Sova laughed, "I know a bit about the C-47's. Would you like to hear about them?"

"Uh," Killjoy said, spinning to face the hunter, "You know planes?"

Sova laughed again, tightening the quiver belt hanging across his chest, "To be honest? Not much beyond their names. I can, however, tell you don't care for planes."

"Ugh, fine you caught me. Viper's plane isn't back yet and I'm worried, ok?" Killjoy conceded begrudgingly, spinning back around, eyes trained on the sky beyond the hangar bay door.

"I am not here to judge you. It can be hard to care for another."

"Not for Viper," Killjoy muttered, trying to keep the thought to herself, but Sova took a step forward and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"She cares more than she lets on. She just shows it differently than you," Sova said knowingly, "Have you really never noticed how special you are?"

Killjoy went to open her mouth, but a black dot on the horizon cut the thought off. In the distance, the last Valorant plane was circling for landing and Killjoy let out a relieved breath. Sova patted one last time and took his leave, which Killjoy was thankful for since she knew that seeing Viper again meant finally confronting her feelings about the older agent. Was she just blind? Did Viper care for her and she just didn't notice because it looked different? Killjoy didn't know, but there would be time to explore those thoughts once she knew Viper was safe.

The plane carrying the Split stake out team landed faster than usual, straight up bypassing normal security protocol to land just shy of the hangar entrance. It didn't even taxi towards its parking spot and that made Killjoys pulse quicken yet again. When the plane door finally fell open, Killjoy ran to meet the agents debarking, only to gasp at the state of them. Cypher was clutching a bleeding side while Yoru limped dramatically down the steep, metal staircase. It didn't take Killjoy long to notice that Viper wasn't with them.

"What happened?" Killjoy exclaimed, fear making her voice shake, "Where's Viper?"

"She," Cypher started, wincing in pain, "She attacked us."

Killjoy's face paled and then it hardened, "Ernsthaft?! This is no time for games!"

Yoru limped forward and gestured for Cypher to be quiet, "Cypher is telling the truth. She attacked us, out of nowhere. Got us both pretty damn good too."

"What's going on here?" Brimstone asked, jogging up to the group, Sage by his side. The healer quickly tended to Cypher's injuries, leaving the others to answer the commander's questions.

"Yoru said Viper attacked them!" Killjoy practically shrieked, the nerves writhing more intensely inside her gut.

"She did what?" Brimstone growled.

"We're telling the truth," Yoru said insistently, "Kingdom forces tried to overwhelm us, but we held our own. Of course, we hadn't gotten rid of the bastards before they drilled this tower into the ground. Viper left us to go and investigate; to get more clues on what's going on. But when she came back, she was...I don't know! She felt wrong. Then she attacked us."

"Do not interrogate him now. I need to heal his leg," Sage interrupted, moving in between Killjoy and the teleporting duelist.

"This can't wait!" Killjoy tried to persist, but Sage shot her a look.

"He will lose his leg if I don't treat it. An hour will make no difference in Viper's whereabouts."

Brimstone took off his hat and scratched his head, "Sage is right, kid. We gotta wait. They earned some rest."

"But-"

"No." Brimstone cut her off.

Killjoy felt her worry and fury knot tighter in her stomach. She needed to get out of there. "Fine. Come find me when they're okay to talk." Killjoy said, before turning and walking away from the group.

The german's thoughts were swirling faster than she could keep up with them. What had Yoru meant by 'Viper felt wrong'? Wrong enough to attack her fellow agents? What the hell kind of tower did Kingdom build? Killjoy had been walking angrily through the base, away from the planes without much of a goal. But now that she was alone, the feelings were starting to overwhelm her.

She stepped into a random empty hallway, likely one connecting some of the offices, and backed up against the wall. She slid down it til she could hug her knees. There were so many unknowns here. Too many variables for Killjoy to work through. It wasn't like mixing poisons in Vipers lab, where you know each component and their possible outcomes. It wasn't like that at all.

Killjoy didn't know anything, least of all what the hell was going on and she was scared. If Viper was alive, she needed to be saved, but if she wasn't….then the last thing she knew was that Killjoy must hate her. That was enough to make the tears come and come they did. What was she going to do now?