Vigil

[Zefir]

[Shuttle]

"Are you certain that the magic does not regenerate? That would seem to be counter to my experience- the flying islands that I have known remain at least somewhat connected to the planet's mana field, or else the need to constantly fight gravity would drain them relatively quickly." Eddie said, looking a bit concerned.

"And my drawing of magical energy functions differently, depending. I consume a small, steady amount whenever I am in direct contact with a magical object; it is entirely involuntary, and necessary that I do so to remain active and 'alive'. And I draw directly from the planet's mana field when excercising my abilities on a higher level, such as what you saw me do on the training grounds with the dummy." he explained. It probably wasn't all that needed, but Mia seemed to be the type that would be reassured by understanding things more completely.

[Shuttle]

"Yes I am sure. I think it is a bit different. The island is loaded like a magnet and keeps hovering. It's more like if hte core wouldn't drag the island down it might just fly into space. Thought it does loose energy with time, but in a small amount. So an island can stay for thousand of yearsin the sky untouched by anyone able to manipulate it."

She does hear up as he explains that.

"That does sound problematic. It sounds like you won't get to carry and magic items unless they are meant to be destroyed. I mean even if you only draw it slow there is a point the magic breaks. But another thing, How long can you stay without a connection? We might fly for an hour or two and this shuttle has no magic."
Thought she get'Äs worried about her sword, but if he dares to drain energy from that she would not hesitate to slice him apart.

I don't know if Eddie is able to read/understand the screens of the shuttle. They are writen in common so it shouldn't be a problem to read, but as it is with people not used to this kind of tech it might be overwhelming. If he can he can see that an island was found and Mia just waits for his reply befor she starts.

[TeChameleon]

[Shuttle]

Eddie was a bit baffled by Mia's explanation, but decided not to question it for now. If islands were going to start falling out of the sky because of him, he would need to find a new place to live, but he thought he should maybe get some confirmation of that before panicking too much.

"It's true that I don't carry magic items to use, but I do have some crystallised magic in my belt pouch that I keep on hand- without it, I can go for about twenty-four hours without magic, then I go into a dormant state and can't move or think. So three hours on a shuttle wouldn't be a problem either way, but as it stands, I have about five days worth of magic with me."

She has nothing to worry about with her sword- Eddie may eat magic, but he's polite about it, and he cannot draw magic from something without touching it anyways.

And the little golem could probably figure out the shuttle's screens with a little time, but he wasn't bothering right now- as far as he knew, he probably wouldn't be on one of these shuttles again any time soon, and probably would never need to fly one.

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

Reinholdt can't say he was expecting this. He can't say he's particularly disappointed with the results though. Eyes stay closely focused on Khafir as she makes her way past, back turned to him. She says words and they are probably important somehow. Somewhere. Right. Don't feed the animals. Sure sure.

"I-I wasn't going to feed anyone anything," Reinholdt claims, his gaze making its way to her face, realizing she isn't paying attention to it, and letting it wander a little again.

He'll step forward a little, finding a clear spot on a table or bench to lean forward upon, propping his arms upon it. "Oh the pleasure's all mine. Do I truly need an excuse to come and see you? If so, then perhaps we don't know each other as well as we should. Maybe we should improve inter-organizational relations over coffee sometime?"

[Zefir]

[Shuttle]

Eddie was a bit baffled by Mia's explanation, but decided not to question it for now. If islands were going to start falling out of the sky because of him, he would need to find a new place to live, but he thought he should maybe get some confirmation of that before panicking too much.

"It's true that I don't carry magic items to use, but I do have some crystallised magic in my belt pouch that I keep on hand- without it, I can go for about twenty-four hours without magic, then I go into a dormant state and can't move or think. So three hours on a shuttle wouldn't be a problem either way, but as it stands, I have about five days worth of magic with me."

She has nothing to worry about with her sword- Eddie may eat magic, but he's polite about it, and he cannot draw magic from something without touching it anyways.

And the little golem could probably figure out the shuttle's screens with a little time, but he wasn't bothering right now- as far as he knew, he probably wouldn't be on one of these shuttles again any time soon, and probably would never need to fly one.

[Shuttle]

It's safe that Vigils island works that way, but she never checked on Skyside as it is a totally different one.

Her thoughts were more about that he couldn't be the one to carry those items if he would go with an adventurer group. Since he is a golem it's rather common to use him for that. She assumes he can lift much taking into account what he did with the dummies.

Since she doesn't got any questions futher she starts to fly him to an island. As mentioned she will set him down and then go somewhere else. There is no reason to observe the golem.

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

"Hm." Khafir doesn't immediately reply, as she's too engrossed in her monitor just this moment, and there'll be an awkward silence filled mostly with the tk-a-tk of her mouse clicking as she investigates the new data.

"...I am more than familiar with your reputation, mister Terenti." She says finally, pulling open a drawer on her side of the desk. "As well as the... ample basis for it. So for your benefit, I am going to make this as clear as possible up front; I have no interest in any romantic or sexual advances on your part, and the reason for that is not subject to change, given time or persistence."

Khafir reaches into the open drawer and pulls out a breech-loading tranquilizer gun, along with a case full of darts, which she quietly peruses for ammunition of the appropriate degree of potency.

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

Reinholdt breaks into a small sweat when Khafir brings up his reputation. The heat in here certainly didn't help. Did she know he intended to steal liberate the cats? That sometimes he thinks things would have been better off if he let Shepherd finish the multi-verse off? That he-

Oh! Oh, romantic... stuff. Well she is almost certainly blowing things out of proportion! He's not that bad, truly. He can't imagine anyone thinking he had some sort of reputation for this sort of thing either. "Ah. Haha. You had me worried for a second. You misunderstand, it's just coffee. After all, I already have someone." Reinholdt smiles disarmingly, ignoring the tranq gun she surely intended to use on some experiment or another in the lab. "But if you're insisting solely on business, however drab, I'm actually here performing a follow up on Klaus. Did the corrective procedure go without incident? How is he doing now?"

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

"That is not the reassurance you want me to believe it is." Khafir points out, loading a dart into the tranq gun and clicking it shut. "But so long as we are on the same page, it does not matter."

"To answer your question." She continues, calmly walking around the desk. "Herr Quire has made a full recovery, inasmuch as is possible for a man with his, I should emphasize, rather unique condition. He is back to his default neurochemistry and will remain as such until such a time as he is pressed into leaving it again. That may not be for years. That may be a week from now. I have installed monitoring devices to be safe, and I check in on him frequently. Thus far, he has remained stable."

She quickly flicks the gun under the table holding the cage Rein was examining earlier, and there's a soft pyut followed by a loud yowl as a tabby cat comes sprinting out from under it, dart lodged firmly in his backside. He goes straight for the door, which, predictably, is still closed and somewhat resistant to the tiny creature's attempts to open it.

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

"And... who would press him into such a service, exactly? There are easier ways to go undercover than to entirely changing your own neurochemistry, that is... known, right?" Reinholdt isn't entirely certain that it is known. Sounds like people using technology for fancy shortcuts without understanding the important fundamentals. Like with phones or the riftline. So many people riding the train just because it's 'convenient'. Not convenient when the zombies attack and there's no where to run cause you're in a metal box and you can't anyways cause you haven't gotten your cardio in, Clarence.

"And how does he feel about all of it? Malfunctioning, getting kidnapped for his good, the surgery, etcetera? Is he upset about any of it? Need some smoothing over perhaps?" Reinholdt can only imagine the feelings involved to be incredibly complex.

Reinholdt carefully moves with Khafir to stay out of her way and to maybe always keep at least a little furniture between him and her. He's slightly taken aback when he discovers another cat hidden under the table, now horribly assaulted. Poor kitty. "I, uh, didn't let that one out or anything." He doesn't recall seeing it earlier but then it was under the table. How did it get out of all that fancy locking mechanisms. Oh wait. This might be an opportunity. Since he's shifting around anyways, he positions himself just slightly in perfect line of sight to see Khafir punch any code into the mechanism to put the cat away in a cage, presuming that she's going to be doing that very shortly.

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

"I will not claim to have any particular insight into his emotional state. I am not an empath." Khafir begins, setting the now-empty tranq gun aside and making her way toward the increasingly-groggy cat. "But I can tell you that the common attitude among GIN operatives, current and former, is one of professional detachment, and he has shown no significant divergence from this worldview. It is unlikely that he has taken the abduction or subsequent treatment personally."

She kneels next to the cat and quietly scoops it up in her arms, being met with little more resistance than the occasional wiggle. "As for subject fourteen," She continues, making her way toward the nearest almost-empty cage, "I must again state that you are not to feed the tulpas. Their reproductive cycles are unpredictable and can result in security breaches such as this."

She then presses her thumb to the little glass window at the bottom of the lock, causing it to open with a little electronic beep. She then unceremoniously deposits the cat into the cage before closing it up again, seemingly unaware of Rein's attempts to catch her putting in a combination, or her inadvertent foiling of said attempt.

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

"I'm not an empath either, but it's not very hard to ask how someone's doing," Reinholdt says. You don't need some super power to figure people out. "Sounds lonely." Professional detachment is a horrible approach in Rein's opinion. Get in there, get emotional, get messy.

Well, whatever. Klaus sounds like he's doing more or less ok from the standpoint of the stereotype that a detached scientist assigns to him.
...
Maybe Rein better just ask Cessie on his way out.

The lack of combination is disappointing, but the fingerprint lock is not an unworthy discovery. There are plenty ways to take advantage of that. "You know, most people around here just call us cats. I mean, them. I take it you're not a Nexus Native?"

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

"Quite the contrary. In the context in which the concept developed, it was a prerequisite for having a social life." Khafir explains, turning back to face Rein. "GIN's operatives would frequently be set against one another by competing interests. One would have to learn to separate the professional act of holding a hostage at gunpoint from the personal act of going with them to the pub for beer and darts afterward, or else devolve into paranoia and misanthropy. Quire and I were both exceptional in that regard, in that we were necessarily detached at all times and not simply while on the clock. Only then does it become 'lonely'."

"And... no. I am not a Nexus native. But I am familiar with cats, and these are not cats. They are tulpas." She continues, gesturing toward the cages full of attentive felines. "Thought-forms. Officially, they are documented as cogniforma dulcis. They take on a shape to which the observer assigns a protective, nurturing or otherwise pseudoparental instinct, which assists in their feeding methods, as they subsist on the mental energies released by a caring and compassionate host. To you, and many others, they appear as cats. I have also seen them appear as canines, spiders, raptors, turtles, mice, birds, rabbits, and floating fish." She gestures toward the pair of cats nearest Rein. "Their population must be kept small, or we run the risk of them getting caught in a feedback loop of indefinite reproduction."

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

The scientist denies the loneliness before admitting it was lonely. Reinholdt only hears compensation. Well, what's to be expected when so vehemently against even a cup of coffee? Thought he was talking about Quire, Khafir just somehow wrapped it back to her. Probably cause she felt so lonely. Rein doesn't envy the person who has to take on that puzzle trap.

"That right?" Reinholdt questions as tulpas are explained. "Isn't that true of every species though? Indefinite reproduction is the whole point of life itself, is it not?" What else is there?

"And are you not starving them, is that not torture?" Aside from how questionable it is keeping them caged up in the first place. Those poor thought-babies. Not a single drop of affection to be had from the scientist keeping them.

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

"...None of that is accurate or factual." Khafir explains, trailing her fingers along the edge of the nearest table. "There is more to life than reproduction, and being denied reproduction is far from torturous. Both of these things, beyond being intuitively obvious, have been the subject of numerous studies and much philosophical exploration."

"...That aside." She continues. "They are not being 'starved'. They are being denied sufficient resources to reproduce. They have enough ambient energy among themselves to meet sustenance requirements and are not at any risk of malnourishment, much less starvation." She stops in front of the cage Rein initially approached, where the two cats within stare blankly up at her. "In point of fact, they are entirely capable of sustaining one another with their own affection, and in sufficient populations may produce enough to reproduce without an outside source. They are kept here and in relative isolation so that they do not flood the island and interfere with VIGIL's other functions, and my research has been focused on finding a method for neutering them so they can be released without risk."

She gives the cage a little tap. "Furthermore, the data suggests that this effect obeys the inverse quadratic law, irrespective of physical obstructions. This means that, for population control reasons, I cannot keep them in such close proximity indefinitely, and the introduction of two new subjects will require an entirely new configuration to preserve stability, or a minor culling of the population." She frowns. "Despite the insights that may come from the latter course of action, I intend to attempt the former."

[Rebonack]

[A Bridge Too Far]

It's kind of a reasonable question, if you think about it.

The VIGIL base doesn't stay in one place.

It flies around.

So how is it that every single time, no matter where it stops, there's always a Riftline station waiting there?

Definitely a mystery.

Anywho!

A train pulls up at the station and Khannie disembarks, the unicorn likely followed by a flying wheel of eyes and a HOT BLOODED HERO.

"I've never actually been here before," Khannie says, looking up at the base flying high above them. "Even though my dad works here. And Geneva, too. I guess I've just been really busy?"

It's true!

Khannie has a very busy life between school and helping out at Glog.

[quillpleasant]

A Bridge Too Far

Octavia had felt perfectly comfortable on the train. Being around machines always feels right to her. But she's also quite happy to stretch her metaphorical legs, and as she zips out of the train she rockets up into the air, spinning around a few times before drifting back down to join the two other students.

-so what is this place? my knowledge outside of prep is still fuzzy. i'd take pictures, but... i don't have anywhere to store them right now-

Since her pockets are back at school, probably being riffled through by Asami as they speak.

[[brackets lover]]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Ardi, as it turns out, was not familiar with trains. Nor was he particularly surprised, accepting it as a foreign mode of transportation.

Following with the group, Ardi looks up as well, impressed by the structure. However, the smile on his face wilts upon hearing Octavia. "Err... I can hold them in my inventory bag, if you'd like," he says apologetically.

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

"I and Nature will have to agree to disagree with you. I won't pretend it's everything to life, but studies and philosophical exploration mean little without children to teach them to. Otherwise, you're simply waxing to the void." And Rein's seen enough voids in his lifetime to mess with his psyche. No one needs that.

"... Relative isolation? They're the first thing you see when you walk in! But why don't you just release them somewhere else that isn't VIGIL? Then they wouldn't interfere with all the sword swinging and... well whatever else happens up here." Mage studies? Cessie has to practice magic, right? She probably has at least as many students as Wenomir, given how famous a mage she is. "If you'd like I could dedicate some resources at HALO to finding a geological habitat that's isolated enough that they can be safely relocated there."

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

"Yes. Relative isolation. I receive very few visitors, and most of those who do come in are carefully chaperoned. You have been exceptional in that regard." Khafir explains coolly. "As for releasing them... I have considered doing just that, but gone against it, for the same general reasons you would not simply set a nuclear bomb on a deserted island and consider it properly disposed. It would leave a potentially dangerous resource out where any bad actor might find it, and it is far more useful in our hands than out."

[Rebonack]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Well that's nice of Ardi, offering to carry the pictures for Octavia. It's the least he can do, given that he used some kind of paralysis spell on her body.

"VIGIL is this groupa folks that help protect the Nexus from really big threats, I guess," Khannie says. "Not like regular monsters or villains. Stuff that's a threat to the whole place."

Sounds like a big job!

"Okay so first things first we've gotta get up there," Khannie says, reaching up and giving her cloak a dramatic swish with one hoof and causing it to unfurl into a big pair of purple-y iridescent raven wings! Fancy. "I know Octavia could fly easy and I could probably carry you up there, Ardi, if you haven't got any way to get up? Or I guess we could just take a shuttle."

But that's BORING.

What sort of protagonist rides a shuttle? Protagonists at the very least ride flying time machines or fluffy dragons or airships.

[quillpleasant]

A Bridge Too Far

Octavia stops abruptly in the air, blinking at Ardi. -you would do that? that's very nice of you! i will take you up on that offer- she says, in a much nicer tone than before. He clearly feels bad, and holding a grudge is never fun.

She turns into a polaroid camera, which hovers in the air before zooming up to get a better angle. She snaps a picture of the base, then turns to get the ground below, the photos drifting down like confetti for Ardi to grab.

-nice wings!- she calls down to Khannie. They are very nice. Despite being an angel, Octavia doesn't have any herself- those need to be earned, and she hasn't done anything nearly worthy of them yet.

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

"Sounds lonely," Reinholdt repeats. He should visit more often! Or less often. He can see why Khafir doesn't get many visitors. Besides being... sandpapery, the whole research angle seems like it would have a limited appeal here. Smaller target audience. Perhaps that's why Khafir chose VIGIL over HALO. Less scholastic peers to have to deal with, more solitude.

"Except they aren't bombs. Or tools. Or weapons. They're creatures. They deserve more than to be caged, experimented on, denied their most basic function, and decided on how best to be- to be used." Reinholdt straightens off the table he was leaning against and takes a moment to adjust his clothes. "Well. This has been... illuminating. Thank you for answering my questions. I'll let you get back to work." Reinholdt will linger for a moment, watching a little longer, before starting towards the lab exit.

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

"Just a moment, mister Terenti." Khafir begins again, holding out her hand. "This laboratory, its contents, and the specifics of its functioning are all confidential information. I cannot stop you from sharing what you have seen and heard here, but I also cannot permit unauthorized documentation. Your phone, please."

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

Reinholdt pauses politely and stares at Khafir's hand for a moment. Did she just want to check it to make sure he hadn't recorded anything? He didn't notice any cameras to suggest she knew what he had done earlier. And if this place was so sensitive, how did he get in here so easy? Is his view on security warped because he's so completely used to sidestepping it? Is this lab actually quite secure, he just didn't notice? Is it extremely egotistical to even think that?

"Apologies," Reinholdt says, shaking his head. "But my phone was given to me by HALO and contains sensitive information. I cannot give it to any non-HALO personnel, for your own safety and ours. You understand of course." She seems the type to put a lot of stock into that sort of thing. He gives an apologetic shrug and starts once more for the door, intending to ignore any verbal objections this time and leave anyways, unless they were particularly persuasive.

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

"Then it would seem as though we are at an impasse." Khafir lowers her hand. "Very well. But I would request that you at least go through the process yourself. Unlock your phone, via the passcode, [passcode], select those photos you took of the locks on these cages, which should be the first three in the album, just before that rather flattering selfie, and delete them. Then, to ensure they are well and truly destroyed, initiate the appropriate data erasure methods, which I am sure you know rather well by now. If, by any chance, you have forgotten, do not worry; I am quite familiar with the procedure myself, and I can do it without intruding on your routine, so as to avoid any inconvenience."

"...Unless, of course, you would rather do it here."

[[brackets lover]]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Coincidentally, one of Ardi's abilities is superb mini-game completion, making something like catching photos falling to the ground something he can do with remarkable finese, gracefully dancing between each falling photo way before they even get close to the ground.

Placing them into his bag, he turns to Khannie and smiles. "Sooo- carrying me up? That sounds good." Gently, he moves to get atop Khannie's back, excitedly pumping a fist to the sky. "Away we gooo~!"

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

That gets Reinholdt to freeze. And all friendliness fades from his face, becoming decidedly hardened as he stares at Khafir, flashbacks of an older member who liked to know things they shouldn't. Was this their replacement? No... no, VIGIL was different now, right? Or had they just been subtler about it all?

Rein's hand subtly and shakily slips into his pocket as he stiffly turns towards Khafir one more time. Without admitting to anything else, Rein asks simply: "And how did you know my passcode was MdGMRLIdRHRdOACAVMZ?" That was far too specific to simply guess, even if the code does hold some special meaning to Reinholdt. He is stalling to give some benefit of doubt, some space to figure out exactly how he should respond to this new... threat. Though he can't imagine any response that puts a positive light on the situation.

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

Khafir stares stoically back at him. "...I assume, then, that Commander Mithar did not see fit to inform you of my talents." She begins. "I have an artificial organ grafted to my brain, which allows for remote visual input. You may think of it as a third eye, in both the literal and idiomatic sense. I know your passcode because I saw you put it in, just as I know about the photos you took because I saw you take them. I will also know if you attempt to decieve me with regard to deleting those photos. So, if you would?" She gestures toward the phone again, giving absolutely zero indication of satisfaction at having caught him out like this. As far as Rein's concerned, she's just doing her job.

[Rebonack]

[A Bridge Too Far]

Khannie gives a small 'Oof' when the kid climbs onto her.

While she's given rides to the kids at Glog those kids are small.

Khannie isn't... Huge.

By any means.

She's about the size one would expect from a female reindeer. Which, frankly, is still a fairly large animal. Just not an enormous one. Thankfully her wings have more to do with magic than any sort of actual aerodynamics. If they WERE just regular wings she probably couldn't get off the ground to begin with.

"Arright up we go!" she says as she begins beating her wings, spiraling up higher and higher until the terraced campus of VIGIL finally comes into view! Various buildings spread across the island's surface with no terrible clear indication of where they're supposed to go. It's up pretty high and the air is noticeably colder here. Also? The landscaping is really orderly and pleasing!

As soon as her hooves touch down Khannie phone buzzes at her. She levitates it out of her packs and begins deftly booping it with her nose. "Okay, Geneva says Lapis is supposed to meet us and show us the way to her lab, Lapis is like-"

SUDDENLY!

A half drow girl in a VIGIL support uniform takes a single leaping step and lands right in front of them. It isn't clear exactly where she STARTED taking the step from but it clearly wasn't anywhere within view. She immediately starts being exuberant. "Hello Khannie welcome to VIGIL you brought some friends that's so great I love new friends OOOH are you a galgal your eyes are so pretty I love them and are you the hero that's lost that's so sad but if you can get home Miss Geneva will know how she knows so many things about going places come on the lab is this way!"

Aaaaaand now they're apparently going this way?

[Reinholdt]

[Khafir's Lab]

Just doing her job is what Rein's most worried about. Khafir's admitted that Cessie knows, that Cessie chose not to share this information. Distance not being an issue has been suggested. How long have they been watching him? She... she something strange in their meeting at HALO. Rein blew it off then, but it makes so much sense now. They've been watching him the whole time, since even before approaching about the joint mission. They've never trusted him. Are they surveilling all of HALO? Surely they have better uses of their time. She must be able to watch many places at once. Vigil's invading the privacy of everyone all at once. That's why it's been so quiet except for the most powerful and difficult problems to remove. Secretly handling it like the old days while putting on a new face. A dystopian police force of unimaginable control.

Reinholdt didn't come here on the shuttles out of habit. He was Unannounced. Undocumented. This problem wouldn't go away by itself. Can't trust Vigil to self-police themselves on this. They don't answer to anyone. Public opinions would be split, unrest could be ignored. There was a solution here in front of him. Taking inaction is akin to no less than supporting such behavior. He met no one on his way here. Was he seen? He could sneak out easily enough. They put so much stock in their clairvoyant, that they grew lax on their other security.

If he was caught though, it'd ruin everything. HALO's reputation. No one would believe him if Vigil publicly denied their voyeuristic tendencies. His relationships, his children. On the run again with their disapproving looks, not understanding. And when Khafir threw up a psychic shield and didn't die, it'd get so much worse. No no, she wasn't precog, or she'd have met him when he arrived. But that doesn't mean she doesn't have psychic powers too. Would she react fast enough? Anyone could have walked in here and done it. Hide the body? No. What has he actually touched? The door. Wipe it down on the way out.

What if there's another? Two clairvoyants watching each other would be impossible to work around. She claimed she'd always know. She'd have to watch him while she sleeps. A second clairvoyant to take over while she rests make sense. Her powers weren't natural, it was an operation. Operations can be repeated. Two clairvoyants entirely likely. Would it not be more humane to kidnap Khafir and any other clairvoyant and reverse the procedure? They'd claim it's too integrated. Saying anything to keep their power for themselves. A proper surgeon can still do the job. Would it not be as bad as experimenting on the Tulpas? Reinholdt's fingers run over the metal handle, trying to draw answers from the emotionless material.

There may not be another chance.

She'll be on guard later.

He could get away with it.

They'd gotten away with this for too long.

It was for the best.



"... Good day Doctor." Reinholdt turns and walks out of the lab.

[Ironsmith]

[Khafir's Lab]

...And in all the excitement, he still didn't delete the photos.

Hm.

Khafir watches him leave, and then continues watching him after he leaves. She'd promised to take care of those photos herself if he didn't; now she'd have to make good on that, or else he'd be under the impression he could get away with wuch blasé noncompliance. It wouldn't be a particularly complicated procedure... as long as he's comnected to some form of network and required to put forward some kind of credentials, remote access was at least theoretically possible.

...Except for a small problem. He's still a high-ranking member of HALO. Leadership, in fact. And with all the sensitive data that was likely in that phone, if she did hack into it for the purpose of deleting three photos that ultimately didn't give out very much information, she ran the risk of causing an incident. The exact kind of thing Commander Mithar told her she wanted to avoid.

And then the realization. She might not be perfect at reading people, but Reinholdt did seem a little... rattled. She may have caused an incident already.

...Not having a functioning amygdala could be such a problem sometimes.

Khafir returns to her computer and types in a few commands, putting her lab on lockdown until she can confirm Reinholdt has left the island. No further access to this space for anyone until she's lifted it. She has somewhere else she needs to be and that meeting will require her full attention.

Cessie is going to want to know about this.