It shouldn't have taken Nikita so long to follow Alex out of Ryan's office. She should've stopped her from causing chaos immediately. But in her defense, she didn't think that Alex would actually cause dissent. She hadn't done something like that before. And besides Semak, she had never planned another's death. The fact that she was doing so then was inconceivable. Nikita had thought Alex would change her mind. Yet she hadn't, and now there was damage to deal with. Nikita wasn't sure how she was going to fix it, but she'd think of something. As long as Michael didn't stop her, "So you're going to walk into Ops and then what? Stop her?"
"With force, if necessary. Or even unnecessary," Even Nikita knew her reaction was a bit harsh. However, if words couldn't make Alex listen or see sense, then maybe fists could. Nikita had absolutely no idea what was going on with Alex lately. She was incredibly difficult to talk to, both in person and over the phone. Though, she'd have to answer her texts for them to even talk over the phone. Nikita couldn't understand why Alex was freezing her out. It seemed to have been about more than just what was occurring in Division, like what had happened in South Ossetia was too unforgivable.
"Hey, hey, that's gonna make things worse," Pulling Nikita back, Michael tried to speak reason into at least one person. Alex was too far gone on her mission, but Nikita could still be reeled back in. The damage had been done. There was no erasing it. But they could ensure that it didn't get worse. If they remained calm, so would everyone else. Continuing to fight wouldn't change anything; they certainly wouldn't come to an agreement. They had to figure something else out. The best way to do that was to calm down and think, "Nikita, it's done. They know. But if you and Alex start battling it out, it's gonna make everyone panic. You need to remain calm."
"Remain calm? She has them planning the assassination of one of the President's top advisors. They're gonna kill him and then they're gonna run. That is of course, if Alex's little rebellion doesn't cause a full-on mutiny first," Nikita ripped her arm away. How could they be calm. Alex was planning to start a war with the government. The rogues had gone to war with a part of the government, and they had barely made it out alive. Killing Danforth was going to cause repercussions that Division wouldn't be able to handle. The second they pulled the trigger, they'd be dead. Forget Amanda, their only threat would be the one they created themselves.
"I think there's more to this than some rebellion," Michael argued. He began to think of his earlier conversation with Sean. He could definitely see what the former Seal had meant: Alex was undoubtedly acting different. She was driven, she was forceful, she wasn't willing to compromise- just like Nikita had been when she had first gone rogue. Nikita's actions hadn't been rebellious. She hadn't been acting out. She had done what she had thought was right. Alex was doing the same. She wasn't acting out because of what had happened in South Ossetia. She was only doing what she believed was for the best. And maybe she was right.
"I don't. Ever since South Ossetia, she has been impossible to talk to. She blames me for Larissa's death. Because saving Alex wasn't enough. I had to let Ari die too. She's upset. She's punishing me," Nikita huffed and began to make her way towards Ops again. Alex punishing Nikita for Larissa's death by not answering her calls and texts seemed more appropriate. Alex was icing Nikita out because she was upset she didn't follow. But what she was doing in Division was different. That couldn't be because of payback. That was something else. What, though, Nikita had no idea. But she knew it wasn't right.
Michael knew he had to stop Nikita from going to Ops while she was that angry. Even if her assumption was right, she couldn't go in there and violently stop Alex. Who knew what kind of chaos that would cause. Nikita had to think first. After a moment of thought, Michael believed he had a way to jolt her out of her anger. A part of him didn't want to say it. He knew it was cruel and not entirely true. Yet, if Alex was acting like Nikita, then Nikita's response was exactly like someone else they knew, "Willing to destroy Division just to spite you? After everything you've done for her, she should be grateful. I'm sure Amanda would agree with that sentiment."
"That is not fair," Nikita immediately turned back around to face Michael. A part of her knew that he had a point. Alex wasn't acting any different from her- especially considering how she had been when she had first gone rogue. However, comparing Nikita to Amanda was a step too far. She could never be like that bitch. She never wanted to be like that bitch. She couldn't be that manipulative or cruel or psychotic. At least, she tried not to be. But if Michael was right- and she had no way of proving he wasn't- then all of Nikita's efforts had failed. She really was nothing more than what she was made to be.
"But it is true. That is why Amanda sent Zoe to Paris. This is exactly what she has wanted all along- to turn us against each other. And I know that sounded crazy in the beginning, but just stand here right now and tell me that it's not working," Gently pulling his wife back, Michael further explained his comment. Nikita had mentioned months ago that Amanda had targets on the team's backs and wanted to drive them apart. It had been a scary thought then. But now, it was a terrifying reality. The team was actively being torn apart at the seams. If they didn't correct that, then there was no point in worrying about Danforth; they'd get themselves killed.
While Nikita chased after Alex, and Michael chased after her, the rest of the team remained in Ryan's office. Ryan attempted to see what he could do about Zoe and the President, and Sean and Owen tried to predict what the strike team's attack pattern would look like. Birkhoff stuck around for a moment, doing what was asked of him. But soon, he broke away to sulk in his office. That was where Sonya eventually found him. He opened his mouth to say something, yet her lividity cut him off. She wouldn't let him defend his actions. They were inexcusable, "How could you keep this from me?"
"I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you," Birkhoff's response was lame. He should've told Sonya. She was his girlfriend; he loved her. There was no good reason for lying to her. His excuse that it was to keep her safe was utter bullshit. He knew better than to keep secrets from people in order to keep them safe. Not knowing everything was far more likely to hurt someone than knowing what dangers were out there. Even though the fact would've upset and scared Sonya- something Birkhoff would never want to do- lying was so much worse. He knew better, and he should've done better. Not just with Sonya, but with everything in Division.
"But you didn't; you kept lying and pretending and saying I was imagining things. What else have you been hiding?" Sonya refused to accept Seymour's apology. If he had wanted to tell her the truth, then he should've just done so. Lying and making her believe all was okay when it clearly wasn't was so much worse. She understood that being scared of the consequences could lead to secrets. She hadn't told anyone about her killchip for a long time. However, she had eventually told the truth and trusted the team of former rogues. So why couldn't the team treat her or anyone else the same. Why couldn't they do what they promised and tell the truth.
"Heh. How much time do you got?" Birkhoff chuckled dryly. Besides the President's contingency for Division, there wasn't much else he was hiding from Sonya. There was a lot about his childhood that he didn't tell her, but he didn't tell anyone on the team about it. With how silent Nikita and Alex were about their childhoods (for good reason) no one really questioned why someone else might be as well. However, if Sonya asked him to talk about his past, he would. She deserved to know everything about him, and not just because he owed her after hiding so much. Birkhoff wanted her in his life, so he should at least tell her about it.
"I don't know. Somebody just told me that I might be about to die," Collapsing on the couch next to her boyfriend, Sonya sighed. There was a slight edge of humor in her voice despite the grim circumstances, and she had Seymour to blame for that; his sense of humor was rubbing off on her in the wrong ways. Though, in that moment, she slightly appreciated it. She needed something light. And she needed to be wrapped in Seymour's comforting arms. Despite all the hell she had managed to survive up until that point, she still might die in Division. There was no clear escape, no matter how many things changed.
Nikita let Michael talk to her for a moment before she finally moved to Ops. he was right: she had to calm down. She had to focus her thoughts on the disaster in front of them instead of on her own drama. Once she was able to do that, she was able to address the agents, "Everyone, I know what you've heard. And Alex was not lying to you. I didn't tell you about Danforth and his contingency plan because I thought that I could make him happy and keep you safe. But I was wrong. What no one has told you is that there is still a way to fix this. We just disagree on how to fix it. Maybe killing Danforth is the smart play. But it is going to start a war that we cannot win."
"We don't need to win. We need to survive," Alex instantly argued with Nikita. Honestly, she was surprised that it had taken someone from the team so long to enter Ops. She had believed that one of them would've stopped her immediately; they didn't like when someone went against their plans, after all. But Alex had been able to spur the agents in Ops to begin planning Danforth's assassination on her own. She had hoped that meant the team had come to their senses. However, Nikita ruined that hope by finally entering Ops and giving some asinine speech. She still believed what she thought was the only way; Alex could never be right.
"So that we can run and hide for the rest of our lives? We had that choice, remember? We stayed because we wanted more than that," Nikita repeated what Michael had reminded her of when he had fought to calm her down. Although she didn't really want to talk to him after his comment about her and Amanda (her thoughts were way too full of acknowledgement and hurt to form a real conversation) she did listen to his reminder of why they were in Division. They couldn't run anymore. Running was getting them nowhere. They needed real lives with real futures- something that would be jeopardized if they killed Danforth.
"What's our other option? Do we even have one?" Alex challenged. She had thought the situation over, and there was no other option. It wasn't like Clean Sweep. There wasn't a failsafe. There was no way to stop the kill order besides killing the man who was about to make it. Also, once Danforth was dead, there would be nothing holding the agents to Division anymore. They could run from the place once and for all and finally be free. One death to save three hundred. Alex was willing to take that risk. Though, it wasn't exactly a risk. It was a guarantee. One assassination, and she could save everybody.
"We find Zoe. She is the assassin that they're looking for. The President doesn't really know what happened in Paris. If we can prove to her that we're not the threat, she will call off the raid," Nikita ignored Alex's anger. She could address that and her thoughts about it later. Delving into all that then would just prove whatever point Alex was trying to get at, and it would freak the agents in Ops out even more. Nikita had to keep her head on straight and actively show that it was going to be alright. If she could stay calm and focused, then so could the others. They could rise above what was happening. They could be better than what they were made to be.
"You can't be sure of that," Alex felt as though they were talking in circles. Completing the stupid list mission with Zoe and Amanda, or whoever was controlling her, shouldn't have been their priority anymore. Danforth was the much bigger threat to Division. He had a better chance of killing them all then Amanda did. If they didn't deal with his threat, they would never be safe again. And they all had to be safe. Alex had to ensure that they were safe. She hadn't made certain that others had been safe when she had left, and she had lost them all. She couldn't let that happen again. That many people couldn't die again.
Forcefully stopping the argument in her throat, Nikita reminded herself that she was not there to fight with Alex. All she was doing in Ops was calming the chaos. If she spoke rationally, laid out the facts, and gave the agents a plausible and safe mission to follow, she could stem the tide of rebellion. She wasn't so certain if she could stop Alex specifically from acting out, yet Nikita could sway Division. The agents knew what the right thing to do was, "I am sure that Zoe will sell that file tonight. Once that happens, we cannot control the fallout. Zoe will disappear. The President will give the order. And there will be no turning back."
"There's already no turning back," If Nikita wanted to go after Zoe, then she could do whatever the fuck she wanted. Alex knew she would anyway. No one could talk the rogue off her course- not her husband, not her partner, not her team. Even if there were better options or more important missions, Nikita would still believe she was right; she could never be wrong. Yet Alex wouldn't let Nikita's thoughts and feelings be the only correct ones. Her mission and ideas were just as important. She was going to go through with her plans; she was going to get what she wanted. Everyone else could do what they liked. But nothing was stopping Alex.
"Which is why, once we get Zoe, we will deal with Commander Danforth. That I promise you," Nikita directed her vow to Alex. After they stopped Zoe, destroyed the CIA list, and set things right with the President, then they would deal with Danforth's lies and what he had planned for Division. They had to save themselves first before any drastic measures could take place. Death wasn't the only option. The team of former rogues had proved it before, and they needed to prove it again. Death couldn't come to Division, nor could they bring it. They needed to find another way- the best way- to save everyone.