lung, meet rewind

[msrewind]

She gets the note just before lunch. She's in the PHQ in less than twenty minutes, then she knocks on Piggot's door politely.

Comments

[thinkering]

"No, not really."

[mrglam]

"Well, then, I suppose we could cuddle here until we do."

[thinkering]

"Okay."

[mrglam]

Ee! Cuddling!

[thinkering]

Mmmm, cuddling.

[mrglam]

"So, I've been thinking..."

[thinkering]

"You? Really?"

[mrglam]

He pokes his tongue out at her.

[thinkering]

She giggles. "What've you been thinking?"

[mrglam]

"About what to do about the Slaughterhouse Nine."

[thinkering]

"Real cozy pillow talk. Come up with anything?"

[mrglam]

"Sorry, we can talk about something else instead."

[thinkering]

"Nah, it's fine, just snarking, what've you got?"

[mrglam]

"Well... I've been kinda obsessing over them for a few months now and watching old news clips and stuff the PRT didn't release to the public - working with them does give one lots of perks, at least - trying to understand how the heck they manage to... well, continue existing."

[thinkering]

"You mean, because their leader's power is having knives and their recruitment strategy is death, or for some other reason?"

[mrglam]

"I mean, now they have the Siberian, yeah, but pretty much. And how they stay- together, I guess is the biggest thing. Like, the Siberian has actually been killing less people per day than she was when she was going solo and, like, what gives?"

[thinkering]

"Yeah, I don't know how their group dynamics work at all."

[mrglam]

"I think I have an idea, though. I don't know if I'm right, because it's not exactly a pattern, and if it was, wouldn't other people have picked up on this? Like, say, Alexandria, she's supposed to be super smart in addition to a flying tank, even if nowadays she tries to keep that quiet."

[thinkering]

"I've heard that. What's the idea?"

[mrglam]

"It's... well, it looks like Jack kinda targets them? At each other and at people. There's very little footage of him, and even less actually public, and I don't have clearance to watch all of the non-public images, but... There's a lot of fighting within the group, too, they sometimes stop rampaging to have a go at each other, but never Jack himself, and he's often... watching?"

[thinkering]

"So you think he's got a secondary unrelated power like mine?"

[mrglam]

"Not necessarily... but maybe. I don't know if I'd even call it a power, if it is it's super subtle, but yeah, based on the videos I think I could justify a master rating, maybe. It'd help if I had access to more files, but probationary Ward means nothing confidential sees its way to my eyes."

[thinkering]

"They don't give us nonprobationaries that much either, you know."

[mrglam]

"Probably not," he agrees. "But ugh, I'm eighteen now, and I'm only probationary in the first place because of an accident, my record's been spotless since!"

[thinkering]

"When you graduate you're not probationary anymore," she says.