Once Owen was able to think clearly again- as clear as his paranoia had allowed him to think recently- he was able to talk Nikita and Michael through other Guardian and Cleaner protocols. Just like needing a safety deposit box for the black box, they also needed storage space for all their equipment. Birkhoff was able to take the information he was passed and locate the Guardian's container for them. He recognized a third party Division payment when he saw one. That mysteriously paid for shipping container had to belong to their guy.
Owen didn't hesitate to sprint to the shipping yard; he wasn't going to give the Guardian more time to hide. Michael and Nikita had to rush to catch up with him. They were too distracted by other things to be truly focused on their mission. Nikita couldn't take her eyes off the scant amount of pills and the numerous paintings. And Michael couldn't take his eyes off her. The fear in her gaze had him terrified. What could've been scaring her so much. She wouldn't say anything while Owen was around. She only stared. Michael had to pry answers from her as they searched the shipping yard for the container, "Want to tell me what that look is about?"
"I know about the pills Owen's taking. The regimen," Nikita responded slowly. Whereas Owen hastily moved around the yard for the Guardian's container, she hung back. She didn't want to take her eyes off him for a second. She should've listened to Michael when he said there was something wrong with Owen. Then she would've been prepared to handle seeing the regimen. She could've been prepared to present solutions. Though, there weren't any solutions to that problem. Not simple, easy, or livable solutions at least.
"What is it?" Michael matched Nikita's gaze. He didn't know what exactly he had to watch Owen for. But if Nikita was cautious and hanging back, then so would he. Obviously, the regimen wasn't great if the withdrawal alone gave Owen such debilitating headaches. Though, there has to be more tragedy attached to those pills. Why else would Nikita be so horrified and hesitant. There was more to the regimen than even Owen knew. Hopefully, it wouldn't detract from their black box mission. They really needed that win.
Watching Owen frantically study the shipping containers' numbers for the right one, Nikita silently begged that things weren't too bad yet. Maybe she could find a real solution for him. Maybe they could stop things before they became deadly. Yet his headaches proved otherwise. And so did those pictures. Michael's hand brushed against hers as they walked. Nikita gripped it before finally explaining, "After you left, Percy implemented the regimen to certain agents, mostly Cleaners. But it was only a trial. At least, it was supposed to be. He must've kept some for the Guardians. Once the agents were off the regimen, they went insane."
"Insane how?" Squeezing Nikita's hand, Michael cautiously wondered. He believed he could've guessed how insane Owen was becoming. His spike in obsession and paranoia wasn't just him being weird or a result of being isolated too long. Losing his chemical dependency was affecting him deeply. The intense headaches were nothing compared to the psychosis he was going through. It was going to get worse from there. After all, he did have some pills to stave off the effects. But once those were gone, Owen was going to be completely lost.
"Obsessive, paranoid. No one can redirect them from their task. They'll try to complete it, even if it kills them," Once she noticed his obsession with his past victims and correcting the sins of his past, Nikita knew what path Owen wouldn't divulge from. His need to kill the Guardian and steal the black box was greater than the other rogues. Yes, they wanted to destroy the black box so they could eventually kill Percy. But they knew to break from the path when it was going to get them killed (at least break for a short while). Owen was sprinting straight towards the end despite the danger. He couldn't think about anything besides his goal.
"Or if it kills others," Michael stopped Nikita from following Owen. If the former Cleaner didn't care about his own life, how was he to care about anyone else's. He was going to achieve his goal at the expense of everyone. Maybe not at that moment. He seemed sane enough to try and protect Nikita and Michael. But who was to say what would happen when he ran out of his regimen. They could all die for the black box. Michael refused to die before Percy, and he refused to lose Nikita. They needed to stop Owen from becoming too lost in his own mind before it was too late, "There's no way to snap them out of it- help with the withdrawal?"
"Regimen or death," Nikita wasn't being melodramatic. She wished she was. But she had seen an agent lose himself to the regimen first hand- it was why she knew so much about it. He had been dragged into Medical while she was being patched up for her latest mission related injury. The agent, a Cleaner, wouldn't stop cleaning a scene. Everytime someone tried to stop him, he lashed out and attacked. He had to complete his mission. Even in Medical he wouldn't stop. Nothing the doctors gave him could deter him. He just kept cleaning and fighting, leading to the death of another agent. Still, he didn't stop. So Nikita had to kill him.
Nikita needed to share that with Michael. He needed to know what they were up against. Yet she shouldn't tell the story with Owen so close. Who knew how he would've reacted to it. Nikita and Michael needed a private moment to figure out what to do about the regimen. Maybe when they got back to Owen's 'safehouse' they could break away. The shipping yard certainly wasn't the place to talk. They had to focus on identifying the Guardian. At least Owen was still on the hunt and soon found the container, "I think I found it."
Michael and Nikita shared a look before they moved to meet him. They continued to hold hands. Owen didn't seem to notice. He simply waved to them to hurry up as he began to pick the lock. Racking her brain, Nikita tried to think of anything that'd let them save Owen from the same fate as the other Cleaner. The only thing she could come up with was getting him more regimen pills. They were discontinued in Division, so Alex couldn't steal them. They'd have to get them off another Cleaner. Hopefully, there was some in the shipping container, "Let's just watch him. Maybe we can steal some pills from the Guardian."
"Then what?" Whispering in Nikita's ear, Michael asked. Yes, they could give Owen the pills they took from each Guardian they killed. But then what. What happened when those ran out. It was far from a permanent solution. They were just delaying the inevitable. There was a chance by then that the team could find a way to get Owen off the regimen without pain or death. Yet it was just a chance. With everything else going on, they might not be able to find a real solution in time. One way or another, the regimen would kill Owen.
All Nikita could do at that moment was shrug. She honestly had no idea what to do. She was so used to thinking of only the worst possible outcome, that searching for a positive solution seemed impossible. She wanted to discover some way to save the day, though. Owen deserved to live free of Division, just like the rest of them. He shouldn't die because of something Percy had forced upon him. But that was looking more and more likely. Even exploring the shipping container wasn't a solution. It was full of everything but the pills, "What is all this stuff?"
"Cleaner equipment," Owen answered simply. He scrutinized each item, almost like he was searching for a specific object. Nikita and Michael followed suit. There had to be something that'd lead them to the Guardian's identity. It didn't have to be anything damning, just something they could give to Birkhoff to run down- any clue could work. Owen had the experience to help him narrow in on any clues, but he had begun to think about other things. He was talking way too much, "Do you know what a Cleaner actually does? It's not just dissolving bodies. We make it so no one knows the victim was murdered. It looks like accidents or suicides…"
"Knock it off, Owen," Harshly, Michael warned. He couldn't help but look at Nikita as Owen talked about cleaning Division's victims. She tried not to act like it, yet Owen's words cut her deep. Although she had forgiven the former Cleaner for what had happened to her boyfriend, Daniel, (he was just following shitty orders, like she had done a thousand times) she couldn't stop feeling angry about his death. Daniel should've never died; he shouldn't have been punished for just being a loving and kind man. But Division killed him because of her. Nikita led someone who had actually loved her to his death, and his family would never know the truth.
"The people I killed, their loved ones will never know the truth. But if I release the information in the black box, the truth will come out," Owen at least stopped talking about how he cleaned people. However, he continued his thoughts about his victims. They were the same thoughts running in his head over and over and over again. He could make things right by releasing black box secrets. It wasn't enough to destroy the intel, kill Percy, and burn Division to the ground. Those he had hurt needed to know the truth. It was the only way to bring peace.
"Yeah. Maybe. But remember Chile? That chaos happened because one secret got out. Imagine if all of them were released. Other people can't get hurt. We have to destroy the black boxes," Immediately, Nikita negated Owen's plans. He had already released one secret in a poor attempt to learn about the other Guardians. Riots erupted in Chile and Ryan Fletcher almost died as a result. If more secrets were revealed to the public, the world might collapse. There was a reason no one made an attack on Percy before. Those black boxes were a shield and a weapon. No one was willing to risk the world just for that bastard.
"So Percy wins?" As Owen asked, though, it was obvious that he was the exception. Percy's death wasn't enough for him. Destroying black boxes to kill the bastard and end his terrible reign wasn't Owen's goal anymore. He wanted the truth no matter how dangerous it was. Sure, it might've brought peace of mind for families and loved ones. But the world definitely wouldn't be at peace. Wars would break out if people knew what the American government was doing in secret. More families would be ripped apart and lost. What kind of comfort was that.
A part of Michael did agree with Owen. Although the truth hurt, he was very lucky to know what really happened to his family. Other victims of Division deserved that knowledge as well. However, considering all the chaos he had caused since learning the truth, the whole world gaining that knowledge would be cataclysmic. The black boxes needed to be destroyed. But none of that could be at the expense of the rogues' lives. As Michael opened his mouth to argue with Owen, he noticed a flashing red light out of the corner of his eye. Upon closer look, he realized it came from a hidden camera, "We have to go. The Guardian knows we're here."
"Trust me. No one wants to be here less than I do. Let's just get through this. Answer the questions. Say whatever you want. Just talk me through Emerald Eagle. I'm not going to challenge you," Sighing, Alex collapsed in the chair across from Jaden. She had read through the Emerald Eagle mission file (who came up with those ridiculous names) and everything that was supposed to happen. All she needed was Jaden's report of what actually happened. She didn't care if it matched what the other agents had to say. She just wanted to get out of there and return to what she had been doing for the rogues.
"You want me to make stuff up? You want me to get caught up in your lies?" Unfortunately, Jaden wasn't going to make it easy. She didn't want to take an olive branch from Alex, even if it saved her from potential punishment. Alex still couldn't understand why Amanda wanted her to do the interrogation. She doubted anyone she interrogated to gain intel on Semak would be as difficult or confrontational. Only Jaden could make a simple thing hell. Alex wasn't going to learn anything. She was just going to get mad.
She was also going to feel unnerved. At first, Alex thought Jaden was only trying to get under her skin by accusing her of lying. But as the silence between them stretched on, the young agent realized the recruit fully believed her words. She knew Alex was lying. She had known she was lying since they had met. However, the way Jaden looked at her then expressed that she then had proof of those lies. Alex did everything she could to not react to the expression. Jaden couldn't know she was right, ever, "What lies?"
"You and that hunky agent that hung around Amanda. I know you tapped that. First Thom, then that guy. How many more agents are you gonna get killed?" Crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair, Jaden smirked. Alex almost laughed. Almost. The recruit was so totally wrong. The young agent would never 'tap' Sean, not in a million years. She had also never done anything with Thom, save for a kiss or two. Yet that wasn't so laughable. Although Thom and Alex never broke Division's 'no relationships' rule, he did die because of her.
"Keep talking and you'll be added to that list," Rather than dwell on that fact, Alex leaned towards Jaden and seethed. For a second, Jaden believed she had gotten under Alex's skin, and she smirked- even more proud of herself. The look in the young agent's blue eyes soon wiped the expression away, however. Alex was deadly serious. If Jaden continued to say more hurtful things about her and Thom, she was going to snap. Moving on from his death, from the fact that she had killed him, had been beyond difficult. The young agent couldn't revisit it, especially if Jaden was the one bringing it up.
"Jaden, you're dismissed. Alex, you stay," Saving Jaden, and snapping Alex out of her angry trance, Amanda entered the interrogation room. The recruit quickly left. The young agent stared after her in the hopes of avoiding Amanda. She knew she was in trouble. She let the interrogation get away from her, and she had threatened Jaden. Yet Amanda didn't ream her out. Instead, she gave her a mission, "Michael, and Nikita were spotted in London. Kelly's busy on another assignment. And since we need a top agent on this, I want you there to stop them."
Alex's mouth opened then closed. Although she was glad she was considered a top agent- that meant she had more freedoms as she gathered intel for the rogues and against Semak- she could not go on that mission. She and the rogues were not prepared for any countermeasures or any steps they had to take to hide her identity as a mole. If she rushed out to London with a team of Division agents to stop their black box hunt, disaster would strike. Alex absolutely could not go. She also couldn't explain why that was. So, she just blurted a fact instead of an argument, "But I've never been assigned to catch the rogues before."
"You've captured Nikita and nearly stopped them before. You can do it again," Amanda smiled reassuringly. A little too reassuringly. Maybe Alex was still on edge after dealing with Jaden, but she suspected that Amanda knew something she didn't. As soon as she was alone, Alex had to call the team of rogues and let them know the change of plans. However, that might not do anything against Amanda's smile. Something terrible was about to happen. Maybe not immediately, but definitely soon.