When Nikita returned to the safehouse, Owen was gone. She had been out of the house for a while. It took some time to reach Alex, and to switch around cars in case anyone were to track her. She also drove slowly on her war back, needing a moment to think about what just happened. So, by the time Nikita returned, she had missed a lot. Where Owen had been held was trashed. Medical supplies, the sheets from the cot, and restraints scattered the floor. Michael and Birkhoff grumbled as they cleaned it up. Nikita wanted to help, but she simply stood in the doorway confused. Until Birkhoff spotted her and shouted, "Where the hell have you been?"
"Where's Owen?" Still too confused, Nikita asked instead of answered. She couldn't figure out what had happened just by studying the room. Although the area was a complete disaster, neither Birkhoff nor Michael had a scratch on them. A fight couldn't have broken out. And she doubted an injured Owen could slip past the two undetected. Did they let him go, and some other disaster occurred. Or was she completely missing something. God, she hoped for a simple explanation. Nikita didn't believe she could handle more shit thrown her way.
"He managed to escape. Don't worry. It's fine. He's probably going to destroy the black box on his own. He's done with Division," Michael just brushed over what had happened. Apparently, while he and Birkhoff were distracted with where Nikita had gone, Owen broke out of his restraints and ran away. By the time the other two realized what had happened, he was nowhere to be found. Michael was certain Owen was going to destroy the black box himself, though. The rogues didn't have to worry about him. He was on their side. After the conversation they had about losing loved ones to Division, there was no doubt.
"So. Where were you?" Birkhoff brought the conversation back to the point. Sure, Owen was gone. But Percy had lost one of his black boxes. The rogues could claim another win against Division. Which meant they could move past that and focus on why Nikita suddenly disappeared. From Michael's and Birkhoff's point of view, she received a strange call and vanished. She had been fiercely concentrated on interrogating Owen, obtaining the black box, and hurting Percy. Yet the second she answered her phone, she changed course. It was strange, and it honestly frightened the two men.
Although she hesitated, Nikita knew she shouldn't lie to Birkhoff and Michael. The recent repairs to their relationships wouldn't hold if she did. She simply needed a moment to collect her thoughts. She hadn't been able to do that the entire trip back to the safehouse. It had nothing to do with Alex, though. She knew she was safe. It was the other woman at the gas station that had Nikita's stomach in knots. But there was no way she'd express that, "Remember those Division training exercises where'd they torture you? My mole went through one and freaked. She thought she killed an agent, so I went to bring her in. Turned out that was fake too."
"Is she okay?" Softly, Michael wondered. He had a million more questions than that. He still wanted to know who the mole was. He wanted to know exactly what kind of information was shared between the two if the mole had the rogue's burner phone number. He wanted to know what happened during the training and how Nikita knew it was all fake. But mostly, he just wanted to know what was going on with the mole and the rogue. Obviously, Nikita cared about her. She dropped everything to protect her. And she kept protecting her with half-truths.
"Shaken up. But fine. She'll be okay," Nikita just nodded. She refused to go into further details about how she knew that. It wasn't so much to keep Alex's identity protected; Nikita simply didn't want to mention Amanda. Michael would only ask her more questions if she did. She knew she couldn't answer them. She couldn't even tell herself how she felt about watching Amanda care so much for Alex. It wasn't anger or jealousy or anything like that. It was something more hollow- almost like longing.
"Your mole's still a recruit? How'd you turn her? Who is she?" Latching onto the fact that Nikita's mole continued to be forced through Division's asinine trainings, Birkhoff rapid-fired questioned. He always thought the mole was an experienced agent able to help them tear apart Division from the inside. Discovering that she was just some kid was a shock. How did Nikita manage to sway a recruit to her side before she escaped. Birkhoff and Michael were severely lacking in information. But Nikita wouldn't open up to them anymore.
"Later, Nerd. Let's just clean this mess," As much as Nikita wanted to distract herself by talking about Alex, she knew it was better just to clean the safehouse. Anything concerning Division or Amanda was a slippery slope into disaster. She shouldn't allow herself to dwell on it, especially when the morphine was in sight. She should help the other rogues with the mess. She also should ask them about the conversation with Owen she had missed. It was probably more of his hatred for Division since Emily was killed. But maybe that could fit nicely with the rest of the rogues. After all, they were all livid at something the hellhole took from them.
The almost team wound up not talking at all. The three cleaned, reset, and went their separate ways once more. Nikita actually gave an excuse before she disappeared that time. She didn't leave Michael and Birkhoff in confusion. She was simply returning to her loft to check on her mole and find another mission for them to fuck over Division with. She promised Birkhoff they'd have their movie night soon; he joked that Nikita should bring her mole along when they did. Awkward laughter filled the safehouse, but at least it was some sort of sound of joy. The three were getting somewhere together.
Alex wasn't sure what to think. Nothing happened after Amanda brought her back to Division. She saw that Thom really was alive and well, as was the agent who had 'kidnapped' her, and then she went to bed. Amanda debriefed her the next morning, praised her some more for surviving the torture and escaping, but that was it. Everything proceeded as though it was normal. No one mentioned what had happened, not even Thom or Jaden. It was simply another run-of-the-mill training. More just like it were bound to follow.
Except, Alex couldn't shake what had happened. The torture didn't linger on her mind- she had been through worse. And a part of her knew Amanda would rush to her aid; she knew the woman cared for her, and wanted to preserve her self-interest in the Semak kill mission. It was the fact that Nikita kept running to her when she needed her that had Alex stunned. There was no reason for the rogue to keep helping her. She had saved her once, that should've been enough. Yet Nikita continued to have her back. Alex didn't know what to make of that.
Maybe she should use that to her advantage, though. Not for her own personal gain, but to help others. Nikita periodically checked on Alex to see if she was alright. It was possible that during one of those conversations, the recruit could ask the rogue for help. Another girl trapped in Division was in trouble. Surely, Nikita would help her too. Alex just had to explain the situation. Things didn't add up. Something horrible was about to happen, she knew it. So, as soon as the young woman was alone in the computer lab, she typed, "Nikita? Are you there?"
"Yeah. Are you okay?" Nearly instantly, Nikita replied. Alex never knew what she was doing when she responded to her messages. She doubted the rogue was just sitting at her computer waiting for information to reach her. She had important things to do while she attempted to destroy Division and kill Percy. Nikita certainly didn't always have time for her mole. Yet she made time- she always made herself available to Alex. It was weird that two very different women made the young recruit feel so special. Both Amanda and Nikita halted their busy lives for her; though, they paid attention to her in drastically different ways.
Shaking her head, Alex forced herself to refocus. It wasn't about her at the moment. It was about Sara. Once she was called into Percy's office after their failed target practice, Alex knew something was wrong. The feeling only solidified when Sara returned from his office with a mission. As much as she liked her fellow recruit, there was no way she should've been promoted to agent. She hadn't passed a single exercise. It didn't make any sense. But maybe that was where Nikita could come in, "There's another recruit, Sara. She has a good heart but terrible skills. Yet she was sent out on an op before our top recruit. I think something's wrong."
"What do you know about the op?" Nikita didn't question Alex's instincts; she simply asked for the facts. Alex sighed in relief. She knew she could rely on the rogue. A part of her had wanted to ask Amanda for help. The woman constantly assured her and made her feel warm and comfortable. But deep down she knew that wouldn't work for Sara. Amanda would spin the off putting mission as a great opportunity for Sara to prove herself. She'd try to sweep away any of the red flags and paint everything in a false positive light. Alex needed reality. She needed someone who wasn't afraid to express the full horrible truth of Division.
"Only that it involves a bombing and a environmental group," Quickly, Alex shared what she knew. It wasn't much; she wished she had gathered more intel. Yet Sara wouldn't tell her anything. She wanted to be the perfect agent and keep all the details of her mission as 'need to know'. Alex only got so much from snooping and making Sara drop the file and pamphlets she had in her hands. All the young woman was able to obtain was loose information about a bomb and an environmental protest. Hopefully, that would be enough.
"It's probably a suicide mission. Cancel the recruit without them even knowing," Nikita seemed to think so as she told Alex what she suspected. In all honesty, Alex shouldn't have been as surprised as she was. She knew the mission was wrong. Sara was more bound for cancellation than for a promotion. Yet the fact still stung. She had heard of the threat looming over agents' heads- if they didn't perform well, they died. But she had never seen it in practice. The fact made Alex sick to her stomach. It was so wrong.
"No. That can't happen. Sara's a good person. She shouldn't even be in Division. You have to help her. She's worth saving," Alex typed furiously. If anyone could save Sara, it had to be Nikita. Maybe she could bring Michael and Birkhoff in on the mission too. The rogues had saved Jill Moretti and other innocents together. They could do it again- they had to do it again. Alex needed them to make certain Sara was okay. She forgot at times that people with good hearts still existed. Her fellow recruit was one of those people. The world couldn't lose her. Alex knew it lost enough people with pure souls.
"They're all worth saving," After a second, Nikita responded. Alex couldn't argue with her. Even Jaden and Kelly deserved a chance outside of the hellish Division. They were all the victims of individuals corrupt with power. It was one of the reasons the rogues were trying to burn the place down. Alex had gathered that much from what they had done and her conversations with Nikita. The whole world would be free of that evil- from innocents to agents. Sometimes though, they had to focus on just one person, "Tell me everything you know."
Hastily, Alex told Nikita everything she knew- it didn't matter how small. Nikita thanked her before logging off, and with great timing too. Just as Alex pushed away from her computer, Robbie found her. He was another recruit upset by Sara's promotion. But not in the same way the young woman was. He was next in line for promotion. He was the top recruit besides Thom. He was due for a mission. Yet he kept getting overlooked. Alex tried to tell him that that wasn't a bad thing, but he wouldn't listen. He wanted out of Division.
It wasn't in the same way that the rogues had wanted out. Robbie was itching for a mission. He was dying to be an agent like James Bond. Alex couldn't understand it. There was no appeal to being an agent (besides her revenge). From what she had assessed, it was the same as being a recruit; agents simply were allowed to breathe fresh air. Again, Robbie wouldn't listen. He was going to have the adventures he always wanted. He had hope that Division would be his saving grace. Alex tried to convince him otherwise.
He should've listened to her. Later that day, Robbie did get a promotion. But it wasn't what he wanted. He became a guard instead of an agent. He wasn't free; he was even more trapped. Alex watched him slowly lose himself. He was disappointed by the organization he thought would save him. So, he snapped. He turned against those who had hurt him, shooting to kill. Once again, Alex tried to get him to listen to her. She tried to get him to escape and join the rogues. Robbie was set in his ways, though. He wanted revenge.
However, his revenge got him killed. Alex saw the whole scene unfold. While half of Division was focused on stopping Nikita, the other half tried to contain Robbie. He was on his warpath, though- his rampage. It looked like no one could stop him. If he couldn't escape, no one could. But a person couldn't go up against Division alone. Eventually, the black ops organization regrouped and killed him. Robbie never had a chance. He just wanted to be happy, yet Division stole that from him. Alex witnessed it happen.
Things weren't fairing much better for Nikita. She had saved Sara from her unsuspecting suicide mission, involving Michael and Birkhoff in her schemes. But it didn't last long. Division caught up to the rogues and killed Sara. She was always destined to die by the hellhole's hands- but not before a damning video was released that ruined Division's plans. At least, that was what Alex was led to believe. When she checked the shell program later, she discovered how wrong she was. She shouldn't have doubted the rogues. And she shouldn't have been so absorbed by the negative. Nikita's message proved she could hope, "Sara's alive, well, and free."
"Another mission. Assassination. Happening tonight," Immediately, as a way to express her immense gratitude, Alex informed Nikita of an op Thom had confided in her. It was his first kill mission- his final test before he became an agent. He was worried he wouldn't be able to do it, and that he might end up like Robbie. At the time, Alex had comforted him. But since she was alone, she ran to Nikita. Thom was right. No one else should end up like Robbie, or like Sara. Alex had to ensure Division recruits and agents stayed safe. The victims of evil men shouldn't continue to suffer. Not if she had a say. Not when she had Nikita with her.
"What do you know?"