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WHO: Roy Mustang and Erwin Smith
WHERE:Residence #28
WHEN: Early morning (around 2:00 am)
WHAT: Information and planning!
WARNINGS: Too much tea

By the time Roy arrives at Erwin's place, the streets are practically empty. Occasionally, a car hovers by, or a few drunken late night partiers stagger their way back home under the streetlights, creating a moment of noise before all is quiet again.

Roy takes a moment to gather himself. Ever since he got the job at the police station, he had barely spent any time in his own apartment. The police station provided more resources than being a school bus driver, but utilizing them to find out more about Heropa and the government was proving a little more difficult than he would have liked, despite the recent events. It wasn't surprising, considering the way they handle things, but it meant there was still a lot he didn't know.

He adjusts the pile of papers and folders he brought from the office under his arm and knocks on the door. Yes, there was still a lot left to do.

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Despite the early hour of the morning, Erwin was wide awake. A few months here hadn't changed his habit of staying up during the night or waking up in the early hours of the morning when there were things to be done.

The house was peaceful at this time of morning, it gave him a chance to sit in the living room with his laptop and files to do some work. There was a half empty cup of coffee at his left hand, looking up as he heard the knock on the door. Since Roy seemed to have the same idea as he did, there hadn't been any objection to arranging to get some work done in the middle of the night. The door was opened for the other man, Erwin giving him a nod as he let him in.

"I appreciate you meeting me this morning," he said as he closed the door behind him. "Help yourself to some coffee, we have a lot to get through."

"Not at all," Roy said, as he stepped into the house and made his way to the living room. Seeing the laptop and files there was unsurprising. He had known Erwin long enough to get a sense of his similar work ethic. It was part of the reason the Colonel had begun to trust Erwin in the first place. "I had some work I needed to take care of in the office anyway."

Coffee was not usually Roy's choice of beverage. He preferred the taste of tea to the bitterness of coffee, but there were times when the latter proved more effective and essential. This was one of those nights. He set his own papers down across from Erwin's files before pouring himself a mug of coffee.

"I thank you for your hospitality," he said, as he took his seat. The warmth from the mug was a small comfort as he wrapped his hands around it and leaned back in his chair. "Seems like you've been busy." Which was his way of saying, Let's begin.

"Yes. I've been able to gather up a few more details concerning the Porter, if you would like to read the report," Erwin said as he grabbed one of the files. That trust was beginning to be returned, it was a careful determination but time had proven the Colonel seemed to share his thought process for the most part.

"You are welcome to keep this copy, there are others and back up," he assured him as he leaned back. "I've also been working on compiling information on the military, at least as much as I've been able to gather working there. It's been a slow process but I've been able to put together some information, such as it is," he said as Roy took the file and read it.

Roy put his mug down on the table as he took the report. Ever since he first arrived, the Porter was one of those entities that was always just out of reach. It was like a shadow to this world--present in their lives, but lurking out of plain sight.

Roy took his time as he read, scrutinizing everything that was written down. He had always suspected that the government knew more about the Porter than they were willing to tell them, but now it seemed as if they really didn't have too much control over the Porter's actions. In fact:

"This makes it sound as if the Porter's alive." Which was impossible. It was a machine, after all. He glanced up at Erwin. "Did Ms. Hange have a description of it as well?"

"She didn't, we didn't have a chance to meet for her to give more information before she was sent back home," Erwin said with a shake of his head. The government not having much control over the Porter wasn't very reassuring, if anything it was more troubling in the lack of disclosure. It had such a control over their lives Erwin wasn't comfortable with but if it wasn't in the government's hands, whose hands would it fall into?

"If it's alive, then we have to begin to question it's motivations, it's interests," Erwin said thoughtfully, looking at Roy. A living machine, it seemed almost unbelievable.

"I can't say I disagree."

Roy took out a pen from his pocket and fell silent for a few minutes as he began reading the report again. As he went through it, he occasionally underlined a few phrases that caught his attention. It was unsettling the way some of these notes were phrased. If all of these were true, and Roy had little doubt to the contrary, then it meant that there was even more that they didn't know about this place and the way it was run than he originally thought.

"If the military is truly skeptical about our reasons for being here, then it's possible that they have some information that we don't. The fact that the government officials and public believe that we are solely here to help in their war proves that." He circled the last paragraph. "If that's the case, then it means that the military may have more of a connection to the Porter than the government has. Otherwise there would be no reason to suspect something such as that."

He put his pen down on the table, and took a sip of his coffee before finally looking back up at Erwin.

"From what I understood from the terms of the paintball game, it sounded as if the winners would be meeting with the Porter directly. Do you know if that was the case, or was there someone there who was answering their questions?"

"Yes, she was able to see the Porter in person before she departed. I believe there was someone there to answer questions as well," Erwin explained, nodding in agreement with Roy's theories.

"I was thinking along the same lines but uncovering information from the military has been slow going," he admitted. "I've been working with them with the purpose of being in an more ideal position to uncover what that connection may be," he said slowly, this was a huge show of trust that he would be exposing a bit of his plans to Roy in such a way. But he hoped the Colonel would be a valuable ally, Erwin wasn't sure what was going to happen in the future but it was always best to be prepared just in case. "For the past months I've been compiling what I have been able to uncover about the inner workings of the military structure here as well anything of interest to follow up on."

"I can't say I'm too surprised," he said, "Despite their reasons for bringing us here, they have a tendency of refusing information to us. Judging by the recent swearing in ceremonies, it seems like they've also started increasing their security measures. Whether or not that's due to their war or the fact that they don't trust us is still unclear."

Roy shifted through the piles of papers and folders he brought with him until he found his journal. It was small, yet thick, filled with little slips of paper and dog eared pages to mark specific sections. He turned to about halfway through the journal, where his notes on being here began.

If the military did have a stronger connection to the Porter, then it was important that they continued to learn as much as they could about them. Erwin's access to the military, no matter how limited, would certainly come in handy. He turned the pages of the journal--filled with handwritten notes and hand drawn copies of maps--until he found the next available blank page. He grabbed his pen from the table.

"What exactly did you find out?"

Edited 2014-08-22 19:05 (UTC)

"It could be a combination of both, especially considering the nullifers I've noticed they've made a point of using," Erwin pointed out. They weren't a concern so much to him as he preferred depending on methods he could rely on. Having powers was something still strange to him and not something he still trusted.

"Here, I've cataloged my various observations in a more convenient format," Erwin said as he grabbed his laptop. Typing was easier, and more legible, with one hand but once he found the file he handed the laptop over to Roy. It was mostly his notes on the structure of the military, notes concerning hierarchy, what he had been teaching in the classroom even complete with annotations on all of his own lesson plans on subjects concerning modern military strategy and tactics.

"That's right. Considering some of the people who were brought here, I suppose it only makes sense that they would take the proper precautions. However, using nullifiers only means that despite what they say, they still don't trust us."

Roy took the laptop a little too carefully and set it down on the table in front of him. He was still not entirely used to the advanced technology, although he couldn't deny that most everything he had seen was extremely useful in some way or another.

He read over Erwin's notes on the military, taking just as long as he did when he read the information on the Porter. He wrote everything down in his own journal as he went through the document so that he could have a record and look over them later. When he finally finished, he handed the laptop back over with a nod of thanks. He placed his elbows on the table and laced his hands together in thought as he looked over everything again. After a few minutes of silence, he finally spoke again.

"Are you capable of getting a map of the interior of the military base?"

"I'm not surprised they don't trust us. Give a group powers, put them together, there is potential for that to backfire on them," Erwin agreed with a nod. But at least that lack of trust was returned, Erwin didn't trust the military or government either.

"I've been working on that. I can diagram something for you by the end of this week," Erwin said, he had been making mental notes about the layout of he base, where he had been. It was necessary to be careful, Erwin had developed strategies to find himself in parts of the base he hadn't been in before to get an idea of not only the layout but any resources the military may have.

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