I'm not runnin'

[defensebonds]

WHO: Participants in Operation Archangel
WHERE: Maurtia Falls
WHEN: Mingling posts will be throughout July; Battle posts will be August 5th
WHAT: Archangel is back on its feet, preparing its members, and striking back where it counts.
WARNINGS: Violence, drug mentions and other such unpleasantness.


Open Prompts -- Month of July
Meet n' Greet
Things are a little different in the ranks of Archangel these days, starting with the most noticeable change: cells. Each cell has their own base, and no cell knows the base of another. Certainly makes things seem a little bit smaller, doesn't it? Of course, that means that, like it or not, you've got people in your team you need to get to know and prepare to trust with your life. Do you think you'll all get along like peas in a pod? Or like cats and dogs? Only way to find out is to strike up a conversation and see where it goes. On the upside, you get to try on your new uniform while you're there.

Training
You've come a long way from your beginning days as an operative -- but that doesn't mean your work is finished. Whether you're a seasoned war veteran or a scrub just getting your feet wet, you still have a lot to learn both about the enemies you'll face and working seamlessly with your new team. Your commanding officer will be on hand to help you every step of the way, and ol' Cap will be making the rounds to check on your progress... and maybe go a round in the ring with you, if you're looking for a sparring partner. Want to get to know your fellow cells? Not a problem; after everyone's gotten a good skill set they've put to the test, the cells will have the chance to intermingle and go head to head.

Investigation
Sure, all this punching and fight clubbing might be the cat's pajamas, but there's work to be done, isn't there? If you're the type to like a bit of digging around in the dirt, you'd better believe you'll have some work ready for you. Want to get some slanderous info about the local "hero" cops? Or maybe discover some weaknesses in the defenses of the cartels they've made deals with? If you can think of it, it probably needs to be done. Grab one of your teammates for a romp, or bump into another cell's operative and team up to cover more ground.


Battle Prompts -- August 5th
Party Poopers: Heiji, Sabriel, Clark, Jo, Hawke, Nysrog, Batgirl, and any member of the Knights of the Red Branch
Who doesn't like a good party? You, apparently. Way to harsh everybody's groove, pal. There's a lot to be done here, from sneaking in to securing the exits, straight on through to throwing caution to the wind and setting off an explosive or two before running into the chaos and rounding up the scattering cops like wayward sheep. Of course, these sheep are armed -- and they have sharks. Yes, dear friend, once things get wild and crazy some dastardly member of the police will let slip the proverbial hounds of war, and you'll have a few land sharks nipping at your heels while you make as many casualty-free arrests as you can and try to avoid ending up as a special feature on the Discovery Channel.

Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dick: Kaidan, Glitch, and Kanaya
Getting the drop on a pair of baddies sure seemed like a good idea, didn't it? Too bad that "getting the drop" ended up as less of an easy arrest and more of a boy-they-sure-do-look-ticked-off sort of scenario. Captain Dee and Captain Randall didn't come to check their product without being prepared for potential difficulties, and they're apparently armed to the teeth -- and we're not talking guns. Are you ready to rumble? Because the exit is blocked so you'd best prepare yourself, compadre.

The Big Kahuna: Kasumi, Shepard, and Motoko
So, here you are: Ready to take on the Big Kahuna himself. Chief Tanner sure doesn't look like the worst thing you've ever seen, does he? Of course, it's a little hard to say that when he leads you on a bit of a chase to some heavy duty equipment he'd been having a look at. Great Gatsby, is that a goddamned mech? Seems like you might have your work cut out for you, after all. There's a hell of a lot of guns on that thing, so you'd best be ready to use the 5 D's: dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge.

Wildcard
Alright, so maybe you're doing a little Archangel work that doesn't quite fit the bill you were looking for. That's okay, bub; you do you, in all your majestic glory. Just don't get your ass caught or Captain America will give you such a talking to. Just know, he's not mad -- he's just disappointed.

Comments

[kanadian]

[ Kaidan wasn't so hard that he couldn't slow down, but at least, when it was business... it was business.

But he'd buy the whole group a round of beers (and maybe a shirley temple for the kid) after the whole thing. He shook his head. ]

I want to talk about the operation. Obviously, in the past, we've had problems. Serious ones. So what I'm looking for, is to see where we stand. What's going on in each person's head, so I know how we can operate as a team.

[ He might be taking a page out of Shepard's book, on this. ] So really, let's start with the basics. Why are you here? What do you want to get out of this?

[prostheticbody]

Believe me, I know. [One does not lose a leg with things are going just swell.] And I've always been up front with my reservations. First to Jacob, and now to you and the Captain.

[She paused briefly and thoughtfully after his question.] I've always worked to expose corruption and crime, especially within the government. I clearly can't do that by working through the official channels. This organization is the best chance we have of bringing down those who profit from the state of this city.

[kanadian]

[ He nodded, and moved then, backed up a bit, and held a hand to his head, like he was thinking. ] I think it's a good goal to have. I agree, that sometimes...we need to directly face the problem head on, and not by official channels.

That being said, I'm not a fan of breaking the law. We're... Doing the right thing is important, you know? I'm not talking about... a high-speed hover-car chase, or jaywalking to take someone down. [ Even that was too much for Kaidan "integrity is all that matters" Alenko. ] But we're not going to cut corners, here. That's alright with you, right? How do you normally operate?

[prostheticbody]

[She had to admit, she was less into integrity than results.]

My team generally did what was necessary to solve a case, and our section chief handled any political fallout or ex post facto approvals for our actions. I've broken laws before, mainly in the course of information gathering. And with all respect, the legality of our actions wasn't Archangel's fatal flaw. [That was allowing the forces arrayed against they to know of the organization's existence.]

I know Jacob had set up lines that we couldn't cross, and I won't. But my work regularly involves hacking systems that would be technically illegal.

[kanadian]

What kinds of systems?

[ He asked, flat out. It was easier, when he operated as a member of the military. He had his orders, and he just went. He didn't hurt civilians, and he didn't take extra information. If he hacked, it was to get through a door, or to hail something, or maybe to sabotage systems.

Not...to get information. Now he knew that it happened, but... ]

I'm not saying we shouldn't do what's necessary, but...there definitely needs to be a line. We don't need to infiltrate the military's records, for example. If we suspect that someone could be meeting with a certain element, and we check the police records for their schedule, that's another thing. It's...an operation like this walks a fine line, and I want to make sure we don't cross it.

[prostheticbody]

I've hacked government and corporate networks and databases before to get the information I need. [She'll leave the part about hacking other peoples' brains out.]

I can understand your apprehension, but I'm good enough to not leave a trace. And sometimes it's the only way to get the information I need, especially about dealings that don't officially exist. [If he's nervous about the lines she might cross with her hacking, she's equally worried about what self-imposed limitations he might put in place.]

[kanadian]

You think I'm saying not to do it.

[ He shook his head. This was going to be... ]

I'm saying we need to be cautious, and actually talk about why each of these are good ideas. Are there alternates, what's the cost.

I know sometimes you have to go...in an alternate route. But not every time. I'm talking about cutting corners, not... [ He huffed softly. ] Not clipping anyone's wings.

[prostheticbody]

I'm used to working autonomously when on investigations. How do you want this to work? There's not always time for a round table discussion about ethics and alternatives.

[She'd like for him to trust that she knows what she's doing, but it's kind of understandable that he might have misgivings considering how little interaction they've had up to this point. Still, there might be a hint of 'I'm a professional and I've done this forever, are you sure you don't want me to just keep doing it?' in her tone.]

[kanadian]

Maybe not, but... we can communicate. If you don't tell me, and something happens, then that's on my head, as cell leader.

[ He shook his head, and sighed. ] I need to be able to make a call on that, or else -- what happens, if you do get caught, or if Captain Rogers isn't satisfied, maybe they knew you were looking, or it led to bad intel? It's not just you, it's me who has to answer for it, and I want to be kept in the loop. I'm not going to just cut you off at every pass, but...

I want to be informed, and involved. I don't think it's...a huge inconvenience, at least for you, is it?

[prostheticbody]

I plan on keeping you in the loop. No one's perfect, but this is something I've done for over a decade. Information retrieval and manipulation was one of my squad's specialties. I'll run everything I can by you, but can you trust my judgment in my area of expertise?

[His reservations make sense, given that they're a mostly unproven team. But at the same time, she's fairly certain that no one else in Archangel--or maybe the entire Import community--has the experience she has with this kind of intel gathering.]

[kanadian]

We've all been in this for a while. [ He rubbed at the back of his neck, and winced. ] I'm going to ask the same of Shepard, and I used to -- am serving on his ship back home. It's not about...capability. I'll trust your judgement, sure, and I don't think... I don't think you'll overstep your boundaries but...

I want to make sure expectations are clear. I don't want to say that something isn't acceptable when -- when we haven't discussed it, you know? There's no reason to hide what I'd prefer.

[prostheticbody]

Fair enough. I'll try to keep in mind who's the boss on this operation.

[Even if she can beat him at push-ups in her sleep.]

[kanadian]

You don't have to --

I'm not exactly the "boss", in the traditional sense. I've got people like you, and Shepard... I feel like "administrator" is gonna be a bit more accurate of a title. [ A smile. ]

Seriously, I might be lucky. You all know what it's like to be in command.

[prostheticbody]

Or you might not be. We're all used to giving orders.

[A small smile at that. It'll be interesting to see what happens where they're all in the field at the same time.]

[kanadian]

Well, as long as I can make the last call, you can offer suggestions all you guys want.

[ But his tone of voice? Definitely said it was a joke. ]

[prostheticbody]

[She'll raise an eyebrow slightly, the smile widening slightly.]

You're already getting the hang of commanding.

[kanadian]

You do realize I'm a Major in the Systems Alliance, and I led a...Special Biotics division, right?

I'm not...new to it.

I just normally serve in a different capacity than this. With a lot more rules and regulations.

[ Which he's broken, unfortunately. ]

[prostheticbody]

[Another major? Well, that's encouraging, she supposes.]

Apologies then, Major.

We had plenty of red tape, but Section 9 didn't officially exist, so we could get away with a lot more than your standard police force. Not unlike Archangel.

[kanadian]

Yeah.

That sounds...like a lot of people I know. I'm actually used to...working in a similar capacity, at least recently. For the most part, I've always been a part of special projects, or spec ops groups, but now that I'm a Spectre...

Well, we kind of do what nobody else can't. I like to think I'm there because they know I won't go too far. [ Or because he was easily manipulated. He hated to think about that. ]

[prostheticbody]

A Spectre?

[Sounds like a black-ops group if she's ever heard of one.]

I can tell you have strict ideals for yourself. [So did Jacob, for all the good it did him.]

[kanadian]

Yeah, they're -- It's an acronym. [ Because even aliens in space in the future followed the government adage: acronyms are key. ] Special Tactics and Reconnaissance. They're... the para-military arm of the galactic council. They're given extraordinary freedom to do things that may require... one to move beyond the lines that are normally going to hold the government back.

The only thing is -- if you act, you're on your own. So you'd better make damn sure you know what you're doing -- and if you act up, they'll send another after you. Ah...the first human who was inducted into the Spectres was tasked to do just that, hunt down a rogue Spectre.

But you'd be right. I mean...integrity's what matters, you know? Do the right thing, and don't get lost in the big picture that you forget the small details. Or vice-versa.

[prostheticbody]

I have to say, 'moving beyond the lines that normally hold the government back' doesn't really sound like your style. How'd you end up with a job like that?

[Creating super-cops like that sounds good in theory, but it seems like they've had plenty of problems with them going rogue. Absolute power and all that, she supposes.]

[kanadian]

Spectres are... promoted from only a select few species. Most of them are of the three, primary council races -- although some get in from the non-council races.

I was only the second human to be nominated -- and it's a great honor.

If I can use even a fraction of my ability to do the right thing in my position, then it's worth it. And it's... a pretty bad war for us right now. So... we need everything we can get.