bug
noun
1 (loosely) any insect or insectlike invertebrate.
2 Informal. a defect or imperfection, as in a mechanical device, computer program, or plan; glitch: The test flight discovered the bugs in the new plane.
3 Informal. to install a secret listening device in (a room, building, etc.) or on (a telephone or other device): The phone had been bugged.
"How's Jaime?"
"Resigned. I am beginning to understand why my tactical advice always irritated him." Blue Beetle walked across the large, empty room towards the Nightwing, performing yet another background scan for bugs as he moved (although he knew it was clean). "It is unlikely that we will be able to successfully deceive everybody long-term."
"Bart in particular." Nightwing sighed. "But let's focus on having a long-term to worry about."
"The Reach want me on that ship. They want the key."
"Yes, I... figured they would. Obviously, we can't let them have it."
"How do you propose we prevent it? If I blow my cover and do not go, they will simply send another Infiltrator."
"Who would be working at cross-purposes with our Team, and could get somebody killed or cause mission failure. I don't think we have a choice. You'll have to be beta squad."
Blue Beetle nodded once. "And I suppose you want me to get the key for you?"
"Nobody needs a planet-killer. Destroy it, if you can. But do whatever you must to keep it out of the hands of the Reach."
"Understood."
He was nervous. He was relieved. He needed some space.
His excuses would only keep the Impulse from becoming suspicious for so long. There were too many problems, too many potential threats to monitor at once... if only eliminating some of them was an option.
Being on the same mission did not help. The Impulse would notice his differences in battle strategy. It might be best to confess – better than the inevitable overreaction. But first, saving the planet from one threat while acting on behalf of another threat.
With the Mogul's attention elsewhere, the key was easy to find. Once the ship was disabled, he pulled it out of its station, cradled the control to ultimate power in his hands... and knew what he had to do. Nobody thought to take the key off him as he put it inside his own circuitry for safekeeping.
-Analysing...-
He still had trouble believing that Nightwing had sent him in expecting him to actually destroy the key. Destroy something with so much potential? He had apparently overestimated the Nightwing's capacity for logic.
It was going to hurt. It was going to hurt Jaime, because it was going to hurt Jaime's friends. But the results were worth it. The Scarab was in well enough working order to enforce control.
Jaime would recover.
He probably wouldn't forgive the Scarab... but there was no sense worrying over that. It should be irrelevant.
It was time to betray the Team.
The key was too important. It was the primary objective he'd been given, even at the cost of his own cover; the Reach needed that key, and they were willing to lose their spy to do it. So when everyone was together, Blue Beetle blew his cover.
Most of the Team was fairly easy to take out. The metagene only improved humans so much, and some of them didn't even have metapowers. His own combat was slowed by the key's analysis taking so much processing power, but it hardly matters. He was winning on both fronts. Neither the Team nor the key could resist him!
He tried not to pay too much attention to the hurt and surprise in their faces. It was good that he'd thought to take the Impulse out first, on that front. It was going well until the Arsenal decided to sacrifice his team in a moment of panic. Blue Beetle wasn't having any of that – he shut the doors and did a quick air quality analysis: density low but nonfatal, oxygen low, potentially fatal if consumption increases... that was a problem if there was going to be more fighting. A quick verbal warning and knocking out the heavy consumers solved the problem. No sense in getting anybody killed. Jaime would not like that. Besides, they were still useful.
-Analysis complete. Five techniques available.-
Blue Beetle took out the key and looked at it. He knew that the Reach would be watching too, through his eyes. Basking in the victory.
Five techniques, listed in his memory in order of chance of success. None were 100%. Unfortunate. But it was worth the risk.
Five techniques to sabotage the key in ways that wouldn't be superficially visible, but that would make it useless to the Reach... for a time. Time where he could infiltrate them properly, without having to pass on information from his own team, having blown is cover; where he didn't have to worry about maintaining a cover for two factions.
Time to find a way to destroy Mogul's ship, and find out more about the Reach.
He put the key away, and mentally ran through his lines. 'It must have been damaged during the fight... ugh! I should have disengaged when they opened the airlock instead of trying to preserve the meat.'
-Initiating sabotage...-