3/15/99

Scutterbotch the Amazing stalks her territory, although she is still less than thrilled with the small leather collar that has replaced the bow. The fluff on the floor has been kept in line, the paper ball shown who's boss, and nothing appears to need rescuing.

Niko comes out of the bathroom, hair still damp from the shower. Spotting the kitten, he grins broadly, and drops his towel on her.

Aiiiieeee! Scutterbotch the Amazing has encountered a hazard that must be conquered. And it's a -damp- hazard. With a determined yowl, the towel is attacked, locked into a death grip, and subdued with prejudice.

Elasia glances back over the couch at the yowl, having snuck upstairs during lunch. She's snickering, "What did you do to the poor little thing?"

Niko bends down to claim the towel, ruffling the kitten's fur as he does so. "I dropped a towel on her. I'm evil and horrible, I know. Poor baby."

The towel has been subdued! Scutterbotch the Amazing sets about cleaning the damp spots from her fur with pride.

Elasia stifles another snicker, "Vicious, yup. She looks so terribly upset that you did so, really."

Niko pads over to the couch to claim a kiss. "She hides it well," he says, with a grin. "Nice that you could sneak up here. Is there any chance you could do it more often?"

Elasia returns the kiss and adds a ruffle of damp curls. "It depends. The boss had a formal lunch that I wasn't required to attend. So I got out. It all depends, most days we work through lunch."

Niko offers a grin as he moves to rummage for a uniform. "I guess I'll just have to hope for more lunches like today, then."

Elasia stretches a moment, settling into the couch's corner. "It's certainly nice to get away for a few minutes. And up here with you and all. What a morning, the Chairman's just churning out policy statements. We're rushing to keep up."

Niko, turning as he fastens his jacket, frowns just a bit. "That unusual, what he's doing?" He adds a muttered statement of Lexington's evil, and his preferences regarding farm animals

"If I knew, I'd have the answer everybody wants." Elasia explains, "Every single one has been on a different subject. Some so wildly apart from each other...There's no discernable pattern."

Niko just shakes his head. "He's up to something. He -has- to be involved in Clara's transfer, now this..."

Elasia blinks several times, looking startled. "Clara's transfer?" She may be up on first and fourth floor gossip, but that of the second and third eludes her.

Niko nods, his expression dark. "Yesterday, to some research station."

Elasia starts to ask one thing, and then to say another, but then simply says, "Now that's a mess indeed." Her brows furrow in thought, "It would be very easy for him to be involved, yes. Just an executive order to the AF, with a mute on it for Security reasons."

Niko nods a sharp agreement as he straightens his jacket and snags his boots. "Lexington'd do it, too," he mutters.

Elasia glances briefly at the clock before nodding, "Considering his ... vendetta against the Security department, and Riley in particular, it certainly would seem to be to his taste. Although, I begin to wonder, who controls Lexington? A man who's prone to childish acts like that, does not seem the same kind who could engineer the brilliance that was his election."

You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.

Niko nods his agreement to that, glancing to the clock as well as he hears the chime. "There, hon, you'd likely know better than I would." With a wry little grin, he adds, "I -should- be trying to figure that out, but it's just so much easier to say nasty things about him."

Elasia grins ruefully and nods, "Such seems to be the case down in the offices as well, yes. He's certainly made a great deal of enemies very quickly."

Niko sits down to pull on his boots. "Well," he says, with a dry little smile, "At least I have the satisfaction of knowing I didn't like him -before- he became Chairman."

Elasia begins gathering up kitten scattered papers. "Your opinion certainly has been well vindicated by the masses of late. If we all survive the term I'll be amazed."

Niko, now booted, moves to gather up the kitten to prevent more papers being scattered. Besides, petting her is therapeutic. "At least he won't likely be elected again," he murmurs, expression thoughtful. There's still a little spark of anger in his dark eyes; he's definitely not thrilled with Lexington.

Elasia tucks the papers in a folder, and sets them under a book, kitten proofing. "It would be a miracle indeed if he so managed." She doesn't sound real thrilled either.

[Big snip. RP kinda... stopped. The scene re-opens in Security.]

Kathlyn> Kyara has arrived.

Kathlyn> Kathlyn is at work already, frowning over her terminal.

Kathlyn> Kyara gives a nod, murmuring a greeting as she passes on her way to the fridge. "I take it by your expression that today's not going much better than yesterday?" A snap of the fridge door, and she slides into her seat with her orange soda.

Kathlyn> Kathlyn nods, looking up with a distracted, "Afternoon. Yeah, that's a good assessment."

Kathlyn> Kyara nods, reaching forward to flip on her terminal. "More Lexington antics, more missing women, or both?"

Kathlyn> "Oh, I'm sure Lexington's up to something," Kathlyn says, somewhat sourly. "I've just not had time to hear about it. Had to practically sit on Kaycen to make him go to bed. Poor guy, he really doesn't like what's happening down there." She pauses a beat, then adds, "Can't really blame him, though."

Kathlyn> Kyara frowns slightly in concern, though she doesn't look away from her terminal. "He's certainly dedicated." Tap-tap-tap-a-tap. "Any more information come in?"

Kathlyn> Kathlyn shakes her head. "Not really. There's been no sign of any of the missing women, but no more missing, at least. Yet. People are getting nervous."

Kathlyn> "Getting?" Kya glances over briefly. "I think I'd've been nervous long before now."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn says vaguely, "People disappear from the Underground. The first one wasn't that unusual except for her friends. But so many, the same kind of person..."

Kathlyn> Kyara ums, "How many is 'so many'?"

Kathlyn> Kathlyn taps at her computer for a moment. "Six, last count. In three days."

Kathlyn> Kyara blinks a bit. "And that's just the ones reported? Yes, I'd say that qualifies as 'so many'."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn offers a tired, rather humorless grin. "That's why I used the phrase, yeah."

Kathlyn> Kyara smiles slightly, bending over her keyboard again with a nod. "Wonder if he's slept with all this stuff going on."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn gets to her feet to snag a report and some coffee--she drinks it black, of course. "He?"

Kathlyn> Kyara jerks her chin toward the office. "The Chief."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn ahhs quietly as she returns to her seat, after a sip of coffee. "Wouldn't be surprised if he hadn't," she admits.

Kathlyn> Kyara nods with a grimace. "About what I figured. Hope he's got lots of caffeine."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn nods as she pulls up another report. "I'm sure he does. He knows how to go without sleep after all," she adds perhaps a bit dryly. "Lots of practice, that's the Chief."

Kathlyn> Kyara's mouth quirks slightly. "And Kaycen following in his footsteps." She flicks a glance over at Kathlyn. "What about you?"

Kathlyn> Kathlyn shakes her head. "Kayce is usually a lot more sensible about this sort of thing," she says, with a small frown. Then, with a faint smile, she adds, "I slept. I'm not a man

Kathlyn> Kathlyn shakes her head. "Kayce is usually a lot more sensible about this sort of thing," she says, with a small frown. Then, with a faint smile, she adds, "I slept. I'm not a man. I have no excuse to avoid being sensible."

Kathlyn> Kyara chuckles slightly. "I see, so it's all a testosterone thing." She glances up curiously. "How come Kaycen's so gung ho about /this/ particular investigation?"

Kathlyn> Kathlyn mumbles her agreement about the testosterone thing, then shrugs. "Honestly, Kya, I have no idea. He wasn't talking last night, just said it was something he had to do, then clammed up."

Kathlyn> Kyara taps her pen thoughtfully against her lips as she works. "Interesting... you sure he's resting now?"

Kathlyn> Kathlyn shakes her head. "Nope. But as tired as he was when he finally went to bed, he -should- be." This is exactly what Shan should be hearing, Kathlyn talking about putting other men to bed.

Kathlyn> Kyara nods absent approval, murmuring. "That's at least one goodness."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn murmurs something about testosterone and Security uniforms combining to form stubbornness, before taking another pull on her coffee.

Kathlyn> Kyara giggles softly. "Right. /They/ get a leg up. /We/ gotta work for our stubbornness."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn can't help but snicker quietly at that. "I thought we weren't stubborn. We're determined, persistant... not -stubborn-."

Kathlyn> Kyara snickers, shaking her head. "Depends on whose point of view you're talking about."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn says promptly, "Mine, of course. It's the only truly right one, after all." Yes, she's kidding.

Kathlyn> Kyara snickers some more. "I'll keep that in mind."

Kathlyn> Speaking of males, Shan leaves Addison's office, pulling the door shut with a snick behind him. He offers a sheaf of papers to Kathlyn with a sweeping bow. "Those reports, m'lady."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn's nod is approving as she turns back to her monitor. "Good. Not enough people here do," she adds, with a vaguely martyred air. She pauses to take the reports from Shan, with a smile of thanks. "He busy?" she adds, with a nod towards Riley's office.

Kathlyn> Kyara's typing pauses as she looks up curiously at Shan to hear the answer.

Kathlyn> Shan glances back at the office. "Sort of, not so much so that he can't be harassed about stuff. I think he's just going through some things before going back downstairs."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn nods thoughtfully and gets to her feet, giving Shan's arm a quick squeeze as she brushes past him to knock on the door to Riley's office. "Thanks."

Kathlyn> Shan all but melts. Ooh, she touched him again!

Kathlyn> The door light shifts from red to green.

Kathlyn> You walk towards the Chief Addison's Office.

Kathlyn> Chief Addison's Office

Kathlyn> This office is something of a haven from the chaos in security central. It only has one viewscreen, although there are controls to direct it to any of the observation lines. A large desk takes up the bulk of the room. It's a battered affair, and shows the signs of great age. It doesn't really fit in with the polished atmosphere of the Complex, but neither does the man it belongs to. Piles of paperwork, scattered datapads, and a lurking terminal take up the majority of the space on the desk, but somehow room has been found for several photocubes and a small plastic penguin. The floor is carpeted in institutional gray carpeting, soft enough to muffle footsteps. The walls have been painted a comforting dusky blue, and are hung with photographs depicting the office with a much more cheerful paint job involving cartoon penguins and neon yellow. Several large electronic maps are hung on the wall, each aglow with various telltales and marker lights. In front of the desk are two uncomfortable chairs and one battered and exceedingly comfortable looking couch. A shelving unit contains stacks of noveldisks and a couple of stuffed penguins.

Kathlyn> Contents:

Kathlyn> Riley

Kathlyn> Obvious exits:

Kathlyn> Central

Kathlyn> You walk here from the Security Central.

SECURITY> Kyara frowns slightly. "Downstairs? The Chief's going back Underground?"

Kathlyn> Riley is seated at his desk, reports piled across it as he reads through one, chewing on the end of a pen. He looks up, "Hiya Kath, what can I help you with?"

Kathlyn> Kathlyn comes to a halt just in front of the desk. "Any idea who's making off with the women?" No, she's not one to pull her punches.

SECURITY> Shan nods, still watching the direction Kathlyn left with a sigh. "Yeah, he is. Looking for something to turn up I guess."

Kathlyn> Riley blinks a moment, then reaches up to rub his eyes with his palms. "No, no we don't. Some general ideas, mind, it can't be just one person. It seems to be some kind of specific idea they're looking for. We've ruled out prostitution and slave rings..."

SECURITY> Kyara mhmmms, a grin starting. "You really like Kathlyn, don't you?" Okay, not the smoothest change of subject.

Kathlyn> Kathlyn nods thoughtfully. "I'd about fit the profile of the missing women, neh? I'm a little older than the range, but I don't quite look it." She pauses a beat, then spells it out, just in case. Riley's a male, after all. "I could go down to the Underground, out of uniform. Maybe get picked up, and be able to get some information on what exactly is going on."

SECURITY> Shan blinks over at Kyara as he goes to his seat and slides into it. "Who wouldn't?"

SECURITY> Kyara grins, reaching for her soda. "So why don't you /tell/ her?"

Kathlyn> Riley regards you a long moment, probably mentally calling up your personel file. He flips over several reports, looking for a particular one. "You're sure you want to do this?"

Kathlyn> Kathlyn nods, after a long moment of consideration. "Yes. I'm sure." She pauses a beat, then adds, "I'd like to get some sort of transceiver--that way, you folks could still track my location if I were unable to communicate."

Kathlyn> Riley nods at that, frowning in consideration. "Your ear radio, a tracking device of some kind, and I'm going to want a group of us on your tail at all times. This is a less than optimal solution, but I am afraid it is the only one we've been offered so far. And this has to end and quickly."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn nods firmly at that, as well as your previous words. "Six in three days," she says slowly, "And that's just the ones we've heard about. It -has- to end. Bad enough it's lasted this long."

Kathlyn> Riley snags a piece of paper and scrawls on it, "Okay, call down these folks or re-assign them to the team. I need everybody in civvies. Gungy civvies this time, I think the last occasion I sent three people back to change. Radios on everybody, we'll work in pairs so we can cover as many angles as possible. We'll meet here, then make our way down from all angles."

SECURITY> Shan just gives Kyara a long look, "I was raised to be a gentleman. A gentleman does not press his attentions on a lady, most especially not a lady like Lady Kathlyn."

SECURITY> Kyara merely smiles gently. "But she'd want to /know/ if you're interested in her. That's not the same as, uh, pressing."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn takes the list and nods as she scans it. "Got it. I'll make sure folks're dressed appropriately." Her brows lower at one particular name, but she doesn't comment on it, instead asking, "When?"

SECURITY> Shan just shakes his head again, "I am far below her, too far for even notice, I would not sully her so." Who else would use the word 'sully' but Shan?

Kathlyn> Riley glances over at the clock, "As soon as we can, but not dragging folks down in such a way as to excite notice. Half an hour? An hour? Depends on what folks are doing."

SECURITY> Kyara shakes her head, marvelling. "I don't believe it... a man without an ego. You really shouldn't underestimate yourself that way, Shan."

SECURITY> Shan has an ego, it's just oddly designed. He just shakes his head and goes back to tappity tap tapping.

Kathlyn> Kathlyn nods at that, folding the paper neatly in half and tucking it in her pocket. "About Kayce..." She frowns for a moment. "He's very intense about this one, boss. Worse than you about going to sleep."

SECURITY> Kyara just breathes a sigh and goes back to plotti... er, typing. Just typing. Really.

Kathlyn> Riley nods at that, brows furrowing, "Yeah, I noticed. I hate to leave him out on this, but he's really overdone himself already. The risk's too high."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn shakes her head quickly. "No, I didn't mean to include him. He'd be likely to make a mistake, and none of us want that. Just... have something to do to keep him up -here- when he wakes up, maybe?"

Kathlyn> Riley pauses, perhaps attempting to think of something for Kaycen to do. He nods, "I think that can be managed easily enough, yes. If the luck is with us, this'll be under the rug before he returns."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn nods as well. "That'd be great," she says, though perhaps she doesn't seem too optimistic. "I'll get started on getting folks together."

Kathlyn> Riley nods to that, rummaging for another file folder. "Thanks Kath, I appreciate it."

Kathlyn> Kathlyn lifts a hand in a vague salute, heading back to Central.

Kathlyn> You walk towards the Security Central.

Kathlyn> Security Central

Kathlyn> Unlike most of the rest of the complex, the security offices are designed for ease of use rather than aesthetics. Wood paneled walls and marble floors are not to be found here. Brushed steel and plate flooring take their place. The acoustics in this room are designed to muffle sound, so despite the metal flooring and the constant coming and going of security personnel, the area does not quite achieve a cacophonous state. A large bank of monitors takes up the bulk of the east wall. On each is displayed video from various security cameras as well as information garnered from customs and immigration. It is from here that security can keep an eye on most everything that happens in the Complex. There are always at least two uniformed guards on duty with nothing to do except watch the monitors. A broad desk is located near the entrance, with an officer present to handle queries.

Three arched doors lead from this area. One to the brig, one to private offices, and the third to the elevator lobby.

Kathlyn> Contents:

Kathlyn> Kyara

Kathlyn> Tally Board

Kathlyn> Obvious exits:

Kathlyn> Chief's Office Brig Elevator Lounge

Kathlyn> You walk here from the Chief Addison's Office.

Kathlyn> Kathlyn looks rather serious as she heads over to Shan. She snags a seat near his and leans over to speak quietly to him, summing up what's going to happen."

Kathlyn> Kyara glances up, curiously of course.

Kathlyn> Shan's eyes widen a moment, perhaps not entirely thrilled with the situation. But he nods, "I shall return shortly." He heads for the door.

Kathlyn> Kathlyn calls after him, "It'll be fine, Shan." She snags a comm, apparently to rustle up other people.

Kathlyn> Kyara can hardly restrain herself watching this bustling. "What's going on?"

Kathlyn> Kathlyn pauses in comm calls. "Going to try to stop what's happening in the Underground."

Kathlyn> Kyara lifts her eyes heavenward, and goes back to typing. She kinda figured that part out.

You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.

Kathlyn> Shan returns after a bit, filtering in with some other SecOffs in gungy civillian clothing. Shan's outfit involves jeans that probably ought to be given a decent burial, and a black t-shirt that seems to be resolutely annoyed at the rest of the world.

Kathlyn> Kathlyn disappears as the others arrive, apparently to get into burial-needing clothing of her own.

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