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Post by skybright on Oct 12, 2009 23:23:54 GMT -5
It didn't take long for Daws, Vance, Handy and Nate to make the journey from Caddy's home to the Patil's apartment in the car they had 'borrowed'. They parked on a side street nearby and walked the last block or so to the building where the Twins lived, carrying the files they'd set aside as likely targets for Jai's investigative abilities.
The small crowd of customers at the first-floor curry stand didn't give the group a second glance as they headed for the building entrance, and before long they were standing before the Patil's door. Daws pushed her fedora back and rapped her knuckles against the wood.
The door cracked open, and Veeru peered through, then stepped back and swung the door open with a wry smile. "Good evening, everyone." He said, gesturing them in. "I see you have work for my brother."
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 13, 2009 22:28:02 GMT -5
Major Vance waved a hand wearily as he led the others inside. "Yeah. It hasn't exactly been our best night--we had a nasty run-in with the mutant boss of that clinic that's looking for a rerun of Mount Bliss." He scowled. "But we got away with plenty of stuff. Doc Ollivard's got a pile of it, and there's even some for Mayor Cole to work on--but a lot of it looks like it's in Jai's department."
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Post by skybright on Oct 13, 2009 22:50:22 GMT -5
Veeru nodded gravely. "Come back, then." He said. "Jai is . . . well, I suppose you could call it 'sleeping' -- but it won't take long to wake him, and I'm sure this is a job that shouldn't wait any longer than it has to."
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 14, 2009 22:22:05 GMT -5
"Not exactly. We still don't know how much time Voegel's kidnapping or the bombing at the clinic bought us." Vance grimaced as the group followed Veeru back toward Jai's room. "Or who was really behind the bombing, for that matter."
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Post by skybright on Oct 14, 2009 22:39:47 GMT -5
Veeru nodded and pushed open the door to Jai's room. As usual, the back bedroom of the apartment was darkened -- but the usual array of blinking electronic lights was also more dimmed than usual.
Veeru moved to the bedside, glancing over his shoulder at Daws. "Wait a minute on the lights."
He settled onto the bed and gripped Jai's shoulder, shaking him slightly. For a moment, nothing happened; then, lights began to blink and the various pieces of computer equipment began to hum softly. Veeru nodded at Daws, who flicked on the lights.
Jai stirred and roused himself, opening his eyes and blinking against the lights as he stretched. "Good evening, everyone." He regarded Vance and the others gravely. "Something has happened?"
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 14, 2009 23:00:35 GMT -5
"You might say that." Vance put down the bag of computer disks, flash drives, and folders full of printouts he was carrying. Then he gestured for Handy to unload a second bag.
"Since we've got a man from that bogus 'cure' clinic under wraps, we went shopping at his apartment--but his boss had the same idea. And his boss just happens to be a mutant who nearly killed Timothy Landon just by touching him." Vance grimaced. "The kid's with Doc Ollivard now, but it's still rough going for him."
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Post by skybright on Oct 14, 2009 23:06:42 GMT -5
"He had a teleporter with him, and managed to get away," Daws added, gesturing at the bags, "But we at least got out of there with all of this. We're hoping you can find something useful in it."
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 14, 2009 23:16:51 GMT -5
Vance set a lock box on top of the bag nearest Jai. "These drive gizmos were in the safe, so you might start there. Just be careful, because we can't put it past these creeps to have these things booby-trapped--and I'm not just worried about having 'em self-destruct on us. I don't want any damage done to your computers, or you."
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Post by skybright on Oct 14, 2009 23:20:29 GMT -5
One corner of Jai's mouth quirked in a wry smile. "I appreciate that, Major Vance." He replied, reaching for the box. "Don't worry -- I'm not without experience in that sort of thing."
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 14, 2009 23:34:32 GMT -5
"I can believe that." Vance folded his arms and frowned thoughtfully.
Nate spoke up. "We don't really know what to make of the whole thing. That mutant--Doctor G--he was saying this guy Voegel had taken some research that was a side project of his. And the other mutants he had to do his fighting for him weren't right, either. Their brains might as well have been on another planet."
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Post by skybright on Oct 14, 2009 23:49:03 GMT -5
Jai glanced up from his inspection of the box of flash drives. "You think they were drugged, somehow?" He asked with a troubled frown.
"Maybe." Daws shrugged and perched on the edge of the sofa that sat against one wall. "Or maybe mind-controlled . . . or just so brainwashed they don't belong to themselves anymore. Maybe some mix of all three."
Jai flinched and glanced back down at the flash drives. "Did this Doctor say what of this he was after?"
"Yeah . . . I'm not sure if that was all of it, but he did mention a few specific things. There were some vials of liquid -- Caddy's got those -- and there's a box of computer parts in there." Daws gestured to the bag. "Motherboards and things. Looks like someone took a computer apart in a hurry."
Jai made a faint tsking noise. "Let us hope they didn't damage them in doing so."
He withdrew one of the flash drives from the box in front of him and handed it to Veeru, gesturing to a USB hub that was sitting off to their right. "We may as well begin here, I suppose."
His brother nodded, taking the device and fitting it into the hub while keeping one hand on Jai's shoulder.
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 16, 2009 22:33:32 GMT -5
Vance folded his arms and leaned one shoulder against the wall, watching with a thoughtful, anxious frown.
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Post by skybright on Oct 17, 2009 16:46:29 GMT -5
"Let me see . . ." Jai closed his eyes with a faint frown, and one of the monitors that dotted the room flicked on, revealing a long list of files.
"Mostly financial information, I think." Jai said after a moment. "Voegel's personal accounts and tax information."
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 17, 2009 21:21:53 GMT -5
"If you can run us off a copy of that, we'll pass it on to Cole," Vance murmured. "I'd figure the government shadows behind all this would've sewed up any tax loopholes, but you never know--and it worked on Al Capone."
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Post by skybright on Oct 17, 2009 21:49:24 GMT -5
Jai nodded, and the printer in one corner of the room hummed obediently to life.
"Now." Jai opened his eyes and withdrew another flash drive from the bag, "What else do we have here?"
"Hopefully more than just copies of all the files we grabbed." Daws murmured.
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 17, 2009 22:22:25 GMT -5
"We could never be so lucky as to find the address of their headquarters, or dossiers on all their head people," Vance said blackly.
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Post by skybright on Oct 17, 2009 22:28:57 GMT -5
"Never say never, Major." Jai handed the next flash drive to Veeru, who fitted it into the hub with a flat, humorless smile.
"Perhaps Voegel was gathering blackmail material against his bosses." Veeru mused. "We can always hope."
Jai smiled thinly. "I suppose so." He closed his eyes, lapsing into silence for a moment as a series of file dialog boxes flashed across the screen behind him.
"Encrypted." The hacker murmured. "This one will take me a moment."
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 17, 2009 22:38:15 GMT -5
"It's all an alien language to me," Vance muttered, squinting at the images on the screen.
Nate shrugged. "And I was more hands-on hardware than brain-on software in my Army training."
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Post by skybright on Oct 17, 2009 22:50:13 GMT -5
Jai smiled faintly without opening his eyes. "Luckily for you, that is my specialty." He murmured. "I . . . ah."
The rapidly-flashing sequence on the screen behind him resolved into a series of thumbnail images, and Jai frowned. "Video clips." He said, selecting one. "From the looks of them, they are . . ."
The clip expanded to full size, revealing a labcoated figures whose face was half-hidden behind a surgical mask. He was clearly adjusting the camera as the clip began rolling.
After a moment, the figure finished his adjustments and stepped back to reveal a group of similarly-clad figures behind him, all standing grouped around a laboratory table -- with what seemed to be a sheet-draped human form on top of it. Jai's normally pale complexion grew a shade paler, and he abruptly paused the clip.
Daws sucked in a ragged breath through her teeth. "I recognize that room." She growled. "That's the lab at Mount Bliss."
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Post by Jordanna on Oct 17, 2009 22:56:24 GMT -5
Vance ground a clenched fist into his palm. "This could be more than dynamite, Jai. If Cole could use this to expose what they've been doing..."
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