This is Maintenance | FOSB

[Delilah Graham]

​

"Consider it career development," Delilah told Isobel as they sat in Delilah's office in Avalonia. "You don't want to live and die in the field, do you? No, I don't think so." She stirred her tea and then set the spoon on her saucer. She observed the steam rising from the teacup for a moment in silence. "You need to develop your skills at reading people -- friend and foe -- and learn how to interact with people."

There was another spot of silence and then Delilah continued. "People you don't have to kill," she concluded diplomatically. "You know how to deal with those people well enough."

Delilah sipped her tea and then set it down, nodding approvingly. "See? They just bring me these -- as many as I want! Don't tell me you don't want a swank office like this -- the size of a linen closet without even a pretend window and which smells vaguely of -- gym socks and Roquefort, I'd say? Look, I have a mountain of paperwork to do, thanks to your latest shenanigans on Corellia, by the way, so really you rather owe me."

Thus, equal parts convinced and strong-armed, Delilah dispatched her agent to Yag'Dhul. As the agent headed for the spaceport, she briefed [member="Isobel Nakano"]. "Lotus, your assignment is to debrief with Agent [member="Val Pellian"]. We've heard some conflicting reports about him for some time, and now with a lull in the action, we have the resources to investigate them. While I don't have any firm details, there are concerns that he may have been out too long. Find out his state of mind and tell me your recommendation for whether it's time to bring him home. I've arranged for a commercial flight -- business class, you're welcome -- and a speeder rental and hotel room. Do let me know if you require anything else. And Lotus? If you decide it's time to bring Pellian in, don't expect him to come quietly. Call me for reinforcements. I'll leave you to prepare."

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Delilah Graham"] | [member="Isobel Nakano"]

"-you will offer any and all logistic support Lotus might require for this mission, Crane. Mission details will be shared with you once she is surface-side. Command out."

Pellian had repeated the message a number of times.

It never got better.

Oh, strictly speaking Val was more than happy to hear from FOSB command after all this time. Things had turned complicated since the collapse of the Alliance. The amount of political parties and focus groups jockeying for control only underlined it for the agent. The Alliance had been a patchwork of conflicting alliances. The moment it turned inconvenient? They began eating each other. That was the true legacy of these democratic parties and groups.

There was no order.

They did make one hell of a whiskey though.

He had not received the day that Lotus would arrive, nor the time. That was bad news. They were already insulating the operation, recesses turning into themselves, cells within cells. What kind of job did the FOSB have planned here really? All that Val could do was the usual- pay off his man (rodian, supposedly male, but he always had a difficult time telling) at customs. Then got a local to follow along. Val would have come to greet Isobel himself... but clearly she was supposed to come to him at her own terms.

A few minutes after she closed the hotel room behind her and started getting comfortable?

The doorbell rang.

Outside? A package.

Scans would tell her that there were no traces of explosives or plasma residual within. Opened? A picture, a graduation picture, the two of them standing side-by-side. Val slumped over a little bit, only barely glancing at the camera. Isobel smiling brightly. Of course. Attached to it was a digital postcard. Welcome to Yag'Dhul and Enjoy Your Stay. It projected a few inches above the card. There were holographic ships flying through the letters every once in a while.

Written on the other side: Been a while. Ignore the address they gave you. Golden Swan, top-floor, wait at the backdoor. - C

A quick search would tell her it was a concert hall. One of the bigger ones close to the main spaceport of Yag'Dhul.

 

[Isobel Nakano]

Isobel spent a portion of her trip wondering where she had seen the file photo and heard of Val Pellian before. She was sure that they had met at some point, but she couldn't quite place him. Was it University? Had they encountered one another during the War? The problem wiggled in her brain until the hypnotic thrum of the engines -- combined with the two complimentary alcoholic beverages afforded to business class travelers -- lulled her into a doze. Hours later, she awoke to the announcement that they were welcome to Yag'Dhul. She stood and gathered her coat and tucked a copy of SpaceMall magazine, of which she had dog-eared a few pages for potential Life Day gifts, into her carry-on before making her way to the exit.

She felt that the fake mounted Colo Clawfish that sang and danced whenever anyone walked by would be just the ticket to spruce up Delilah's office.

Yag'Dhul was a bustling metropolis as far as Isobel could see from the spaceport. Traffic lanes moved at a brisk pace, with freighters dropping in and taking off from the commercial spaceyard regularly. She observed all this as she waited in line for the rental, and was pleased to find that her frequent flier miles made her eligible for an upgrade. Instead of the economy model speeder, she drove off in a comfortable midsized, her luggage tucked safely in the back as she pulled into traffic. Her hotel was one of the better ones, and again she was able to use club membership for an upgrade to a balcony suite. She had settled and unpacked her suitcase and washed the travel off in a hot shower when the doorbell chimed. She wrapped herself in an impossibly soft bath sheet, tucked her hair up in a damp tangle, and went to see who was at the door.

The who, it turned out, was a what -- a package. She picked it up and took it inside, subjecting it to a thorough investigation before determining that if it was going to kill her, it would do so in a way not yet discovered by the FOSB, so she had better get on with it. She opened it and found a picture of herself from some five years ago. It took her a moment to place the occasion, but the black jumpsuits quickly clued her in. Graduation from the FOSB training programme. The classmate to her side in the photo was -- Val Pellian, code-named Crane.

That's why she had been unable to place him. Pellian had been a complete dweeb in the academy; Isobel vaguely remembered needing to be introduced to him three times before she recognized him. She had promptly forgotten about him, as had most of her colleagues, understanding that he would disappear into the bureaucracy and never be heard from again. She hadn't thought him suited to field work at all, and had expected him to be doing something painfully dull by now: approving expense account reimbursements or filing insurance claims for the Bureau or something. "What a difference a haircut and a war can make," Isobel murmured as she studied the photo, comparing it to her mind's eye memory of the one that Delilah had shared showing a gruff and grizzled operative. She flipped it over idly, then examined the attached postcard and attachment.

Bloody spy games, Isobel thought, her lips twitching up in a smirk. All right, she'd play the game. She quickly searched for the named location, then flopped on the bed and picked up the room's communicator and was connected with the front desk. "Good afternoon, it's Iris Grey in the Hanging Gardens suite. Can you connect me to the concierge, please? Yes, I'll hold." She drummed her fingers on the bedspread and waited a moment. "Yes, hello. Can you tell me what's playing tonight at the Golden Swan? Oh -- electro-symphonic? How... nice. Would you please get me two tickets? Best available. Yes, to the room. Very good, please let me know. I'll be heading out shortly; apologies for the short notice. Very good, thank you." She hung up and went to get dressed.

She wore a black peplum-cut cocktail dress when she emerged into the lobby, crossing to the concierge desk. "Pickup for Mrs. Grey," she said. The concierge nodded and handed her an envelope. "Mezzanine level? Oh, well done you," she said after peeking into the envelope. Isobel tucked a high-denomination credit chit into the concierge's strategically up-facing palm and the placed the tickets in her handbag before shrugging into her jacket. "Thanks so much. Have a nice night."

Twenty minutes later, as dusk settled across the city, emerged from the taxi on the roof of the Golden Swan concert hall. It was rather unorthodox, but here she was. Theoretically, this was the top floor, and although there was only one door -- the fire exit -- it could reasonably be considered a back door. She tied her trenchcoat around her frame and looked around, then pulled an electronic cigarette from her handbag and switched it on for a puff. Smoke 'em if you got 'em, she always said.

[member="Val Pellian"]​

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Isobel Nakano"]

From the shadow of one of the alcoves another cigarette lit up.

It illuminated a grizzled face, nose that seemed to still be healing from an earlier break, and amused eyes. "Mrs. Grey," He gave her a once-over, before pushing himself off the wall and strode towards her. If there were still any doubts after seeing the juxtaposition of his pictures, it would evaporate in reality. Val had always been tall, but back then was known to keeping his head down. Literally. Dropping shoulders, always staring at the ground, the awkward persona enough that any advantage of height had consistently been lost.

Not so much anymore.

Broad-shouldered and cutting an imposing sight in his tuxedo. Studying her with no shame or worry. Holding her eye intently at the end of the study, in a way saying: I know you know I am watching you, that makes it even more fun.

"I see orderly punctuality is still a requirement, I appreciate it." He moved past her, the stride slow and relaxed and nonchalant. "-appreciate your dress even more." The murmur scented with smoke and cologne, expensive for the both. The overlook of the concert hall gave them a good view of the citiscape. The traffic running through, from and to the spaceport. "What can I do for you?" The question seemed casual. Thrown over his shoulder, while the city around them lived.

But Lotus could feel an edge to it.

 

[Isobel Nakano]

Isobel had been wondering, from the time she got the package and note, whether this was some kind of con job. Was this Delilah's doing? A test of her own when she was supposed to be testing someone else? Isobel had not been given detailed instructions on how to accomplish her task. As was the usual FOSB modus operandi, Delilah had set her a task and depended upon Isobel's flexibility to accomplish it. But perhaps she should not have taken Pellian's bait. Maybe by-the-book was the way to get this thing done.

But if wishes were horses then beggars would ride. She was already here, after all.

Pellian emerged from a shadowed alcove with a cigarette -- a real one, it looked like. Isobel blew some of her imitation smoke from her nostrils and took another drag from her electronic cigarette. In person, Pellian's transformation was all the more shocking. He had always seemed to shy away from attention -- to try to shrink himself and take up as little of one's field of vision as was possible, and he had managed it beautifully. Isobel remembered him -- shorter, duller, like a desaturated photograph. But now as he stepped into the light, it was a completely different picture. "Pellian," she observed, blowing some more vapor from her lips, off to one side before pushing away from the wall to join him at the edge of the building.

She cast a gaze down at her dress and smirked. He really had hanged; she couldn't imagine the old Pellian making such an observation without collapsing into an asthmatic attack immediately afterward.

"I didn't even have a chance to make an appointment at your office," she said casually as she approached. At the edge of the building, with the city expanding as far as the eye could see, Isobel had a sudden realization that either one could make the other disappear so easily. A push, a shove, a kick, and in short order the other would be gone forever. They were ostensibly on the same team, but was it possible that Pellian saw her as a threat? Had he caught wind of her purpose there? Worse, did he think she was there to horn in on the little kingdom he had set up during his time on Yag'Dhul? She wondered idly, as she took another drag from her electronic cigarette and felt her nerves momentarily soothed by the nicotine, which would bother him more.

"Do you know why I'm here?" she asked.

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Isobel Nakano"]

It had been a measured response.

They had put him off balance with the sudden contact, followed by a lack of details on the what. It made him suspicious. Even if he understood the logic of it. The less details he knew, the less chance there was that something could threaten this new operation. Isolation of information. Everyone should only know as much as they needed to know. The issue was that he had gotten used to a certain level of control. Yag'Dhul had been his for the past half a decade.

He ran the operations, controlled the flow of information, everything.

"That dusty office is quite uneventful, I assumed you'd prefer a more... alluring view." A glance to the side when she asked that question. "All I know is I should assist you with all your needs, miss Nakano. Is there a need that needs filling right now?"

Val had never been this bold before.

If the initial comment about her dress would have send him in an asthmatic attack, this one would have made him bleed out through his nose.

He took another drag from his cigarette. Enjoyed the taste, let it run out and then Val got a bit more serious. "My operations have gotten a bit more complicated in the past six months, but I will be able to offer support, tell me what you need."

 

[Isobel Nakano]

Isobel sighed another breath full of vapor, carrying with it the sweet smell of its flavor, synthesized from a rare strand of tobacco native to Atrisia. The taste was almost identical, and the chemical reactions were the same, but it did nothing for her compared to a proper lung full of smoke. "I don't know," she responded with a shrug at his reference to the view. "It's not so different from Avalonia or Coruscant or Cloud City when you come right down to it." She switched off her electronic cigarette and deposited it in her handbag before snapping it shut. "At any rate, your enthusiasm to assist will be noted. I appreciate it very much." Though she maintained her professional demeanor, Isobel picked up on the derring-do of his question without acknowledging it.

"As a matter of fact, I do have some rather urgent needs, Mr. Pellian," said Isobel. "First, I'll need you to secure me an office or conference room in the headquarters building -- one without listening devices (don't worry, I'll be checking). Then I'll want access to some of your staff -- approximately half an hour each, but possibly more. I'll provide you a list when I arrive at the office tomorrow morning." She paused and inclined her head towards him for a moment, her eyebrows raising slightly. "We can stagger the appointments so that your day-to-day is impacted as little as possible."

The agent pulled her coat tighter around her. "I should have a clearer picture of what more I'll need from you at the end of the day tomorrow if I'm able to speak to the people I need to." Isobel frowned thoughtfully and looked into the distance, where the city skyline disappeared into a blur. "A cup of tea wouldn't go amiss, either," she added with a smirk. "Can I try one of those?" she asked, turning and nodding towards his cigarette.

[member="Val Pellian"]​

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Isobel Nakano"]

The lack of response was noted and he smirked wistfully.

Business it was then.

Val listened to the needs. Brows furrowed, expression grew more grim by the moment. He kept on taking drags from his cigarette. Watching the skyline in front of them. His mind was racing though. Making connections as they came to him.

"There are only a handful of reasons why you'd need to conduct interviews on my people, miss Nakano." He finally said in a measured way.

Level tone, calm arms as he leaned against the railing.

"Are you going to tell me or should I make my own conclusions here?" Finally a glance to the side. Eye meeting eye at that, before he got out a cigarette for her. "Here," Offering to light it for her as well. Stepping up closer to handle that.

"Are you here to evaluate me?"

 

[Isobel Nakano]

Isobel took the cigarette with a murmur of thanks and leaned close as he lit it for her. She took a deep drag and then blew out to one side, to avoid blasting his face with smoke. "Cigarettes are like any other vice, don't you think?" she asked, avoiding his accusation for a brief moment. "There are substitutes, but nothing is quite like the real thing. That hits the spot." She took another drag and turned to step away from the edge of the roof. The muted sounds of the concert beneath were leaking through the fire exit door.

"I'm here to perform a routine audit of the intelligence-gathering operation on Yag'Dhul," she informed him calmly. It was not precisely true, but she imagined that for any bureau head who had these kinds of reports circulating about him, an examination would be routine -- at least she liked to think so. "By its nature that will involve an interview with your staff and with yourself as well. I'll also be requesting security logs, chain-of-custody records, and other documents as part of this audit."

She took another drag from the cigarette and luxuriated in the sense of warmth and decadence that only real cigarette smoke could provide. A moment later, she exhaled, finally meeting his gaze without a hint of a flinch. "There's no need to make it more than it has to be. Is there a reason you'd be concerned about an investigation into you directly? If there is, now is the time to disclose it, Val." There was an unspoken promise there; confess and the rod will be spared.

[member="Val Pellian"]​

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Isobel Nakano"]

He watched her with amusement.

The theatrics, the play, the dancing around. This is what had made him feel alive the week he got to Yag'dhul. He had been a child five years ago. Naive, innocent, wholly unprepared for what this world had to offer. It had been a crash-course learning experience. He wouldn't have traded it for anything in the world. Since the Alliance's fall... things had been complicated here. The SIS was still operating, wonder above wonder, but they weren't playing by the rules anymore. They didn't have to. No accountability, no nothing. That evened the playing field, because Val hadn't been playing by the rules for years. It was why his operations brought in so much of the actionable intel that FOSB had come to rely on over the years in this region of space.

This, then, was a breath of... fresh air.

One of his own, but seemingly not yet grind down by the games they played. Or maybe she was just better at hiding it.

"I am not concerned, Isobel," Val murmured as he stepped closer. Hip checked against the railing. Taking a drag himself and sighing satisfied. "Command knows what I have been up to here." A smile. "They like my results, so the real question here ain't what I should be disclosing."

Leaning in.

"It's why they send you here to answer questions they already know the answers to."

Part of it was just karking with her. There was plenty that Val hadn't shared with Graham and the others. The nitty grit details that the bureaucrats didn't need to know. Shouldn't know, if they wanted to keep doing their job nice and clean with plenty of unaccountability. That was the thing though. Isobel didn't know for sure. Couldn't. That was the very nature of this game. Of moving between the shadows and gray areas. One moment you were the hunter, putting down lures and investigating one person.

The next? You were burned and had to survive on your own.

He pushed himself off the railing, brushing past her and crushing the cigarette beneath his heel.

"My office is available to you. Any and all materials you may need will be disclosed to you." A glance over his shoulder, wolfish smirk. "Welcome to Yag'dhul, Isobel, enjoy your stay."

 

[Isobel Nakano]

Isobel watched Val turn and disappear, her eyebrows furrowing a little. She had a sneaking suspicion that this was going to be a tough nut to crack. She took another drag from the cigarette and called after him in a cloud of sweet tobacco smoke, "I'll see you at oh-seven-thirty, Pellian." She drew her datapad from her handbag and hailed another cab. She dropped the cigarette onto the rooftop and crushed it with her foot, waiting for the taxi she had ordered.

* * * * *​

​

She was as good as her word, turning up at the bureau office in a design by Blue Lotus itself, at a little later than a quarter after seven after a fitful night of limited sleep. The more she thought about this assignment, the less it made sense on its face. She knew that [member="Val Pellian"] had been telling the truth the night before; the Bureau was satisfied with the intelligence being turned out by this shop, she had seen those reports herself. Was it, as [member="Delilah Graham"] had said, truly a matter of wanting a wellness check on Pellian himself? That seemed... unlikely. While ostensibly a patriot, Isobel was not so blinded by jingoism to believe that the First Order Security Bureau gave much of a damn. And if the reports were true and other personnel were unable to work with him, why wouldn't they just be transferred to another duty station and the whole thing hushed up?

So, then, what was the point of the exercise? Was there some kind of a mystery to be resolved? Some corruption to root out? That, at least, would fit the FOSB's modus operandi. No matter how good he was at his job, if Pellian had his hand in the till there was nothing for it. He'd be black-bagged and disposed of quietly. Now that was a thought that would fester.

Isobel signed in at the front desk and was given an access badge, the took the elevator to the appropriate floor to meet Pellian.

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Isobel Nakano"]

She'd find Pellian in the middle of a briefing.

Behind the sound-proof window Isobel would notice half a dozen agents in various plain-clothed attire listening intently. While she couldn't hear them, she could see the slides being shown to them. Hyperlanes that ran straight through Yag'dhul. A handful of spaceports being pointed out on the map, every single one of them planetside. Then a space station seemingly on the other side of the Galaxy. What all these things had in common was anyone's question.

One thing she'd notice (with or without sound) was that Val seemed completely in control.

His demeanor was relaxed, but his gestures crisp and to the point. This animal was at the heart of his kingdom. Val had noticed her the moment she came up. Even giving her a wink, before returning to his piece. Clearly the station chief was comfortable making her wait.

* * *​

​

About ten minutes later Val stepped on through outside.

The rest of his team stayed behind, still working on the case itself. He seemingly delegated it to a mouse of a man. Glasses, ill-advised mustache and a sweater that seemed more like an emergency tent. "Miss Nakano, I apologize for that." He didn't seem remotely apologetic. "You know how it is, something pops up and it needs to be pursued with due diligence." A gesture to follow was made and Val strode again. Here and there the man exchanged some brief notes of conversation. A hello here, a how is it going there, nods and pats on the lower arms as they passed. If Val had any trouble with socializing, it clearly wasn't with his subordinates. At the surface level they all seemed to be getting along jolly well.

Six casual conversations and some water cups later Val plopped behind his desk.

"Please, sit."

The office was homely. Lived in. There were little trinkets scattered around the place, newspaper clipping pinned against the wall. There was order in the chaos, the way his hands moved and pushed aside things without even sparing them a look. Like he already knew what they were and how they got there in the first place.

"How was Yag'dhul by night, Isobel, enjoyed yourself?"

 

[Isobel Nakano]

Isobel felt that last night's electro-symphonic concert was not the only performance that she was witnessing that trip. The young woman peered through the window at the briefing taking place, tracing the imagery being displayed. Without more she wouldn't be able to put it together, but she had to admit that Pellian seemed to be in control of the situation. Even without the audio, she could tell that he was confident and knowledgeable about the subject matter. She was observant in that regard, able to read someone's body language. It was either that he was all those things, or damned good at pretending. Either was equally valuable in their line of work. The body language of the subordinates in the briefing suggested to Isobel that it was the former that was true.

When they had retired to the office, Isobel delayed the invitation to sit, instead choosing to do a quick walkabout, tracing the perimeter of the room. She examined the newspaper clippings pinned to the corkboard before working her way around the other walls, examining the shelves behind the desk without any apparent awkwardness about intruding on the man's personal space. Her eyes turned towards the window opposite the desk.

No, she corrected herself after a moment of studying it. Not a window. The view from each of the 'windows' was a realtime reflection of what was happening from roughly the same vantage point of where a window might have been, but this was a clever fake. She raised her eyebrows and peered at the screen. Was it done for security -- to avoid sniper shots? Was it done to limit the amount of natural light into the room? Some people got terrible headaches from it. Perhaps there were other reasons. She made a mental note before turning to sit down on the offered seat. "Thank you," she said, balancing her briefcase on her knees. "I can't say I did enjoy myself, actually. The concierge at my hotel directed me to this fusion restaurant a few blocks from the hotel in the financial district. I don't know what it was a fusion of besides awful and god-awful. But no mind. Perhaps you can recommend something more edible for today."

She sipped her water and crossed her ankles. "And you? What kind of mischief do you get up to after hours, Val?" The question was lighthearted enough, but Isobel was more than just personally curious. She wondered what a man in his position would do in a city like this, where presumably he could pull strings and gain sway over people to the First Order's -- and his own -- advantage.

[member="Val Pellian"]​

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Isobel Nakano"]

He watched her as she surveyed the office like she owned it.

Well.

In a certain way Isobel did. This office had been paid for by the FOSB. So, in the sense that Isobel Nakano was a representative of Command to check up on him? She temporarily did own the place. That was the tricky thing about this entire play. As station chief Val was the end-authority on all things Yag'dhul. With them being on Yag'dhul, that made him the authority. Isobel on the other side? She was the end-authority of this investigation of hers.

Him (of course she had denied it was him, but they both knew better) being the subject of the investigation?

Left them both in quite an awkward position. One that in true espionage tradition would be avoided as much as possible. She'd politely request things and Val would fulfill those polite requests. Neither would overstep, both would get their job done without their authority questioned. All would be well.

That was the ideal situation anyway.

"I could do more than recommend." He bounced back, before shifting in his seat. One leg crossing over the other as he pulled his cup of caf to him. "Let me take you out tonight, hm? Give you a good taste of Yag'dhul and what it is I am doing here."

Another sip was taken as he mulled that last question of her. Then Val smiled. "Oh, nothing especially interesting. Some misplacement of tactic goods, a little bit of strategic waste disposal. I jaywalked for a little bit." A light shrug followed there. "I topped it off with a concert." His mind flashed back to the last few hours of that night. The music breathed in the background. Hands bloody. Part of his side burned to a crisp, but nothing some bacta wouldn't fix right up. Two bodies toppled over. Money disappearing, digital trace deleted and just like that their operation was safeguarded.

"It was quite thrilling."

 

[Isobel Nakano]

Isobel cocked her head to one side and tucked a tress of dark hair behind her ear. "How kind of you, thanks," said Isobel. She wondered if they would be on speaking terms when the day was over. The agent snapped open her briefcase and withdrew a list on flimsiplast, handing it across the desk to [member="Val Pellian"]. "I'd like to start with these four, in the order in which they're listed there if that's not going to be prohibitively inconvenient." She closed her briefcase on the sound disruptor, blaster, and other doodads she had in the case. "I'll find you when I've finished."

The interview process was plodding but deliberate. The reports to Delilah had been anonymous, so it wasn't clear who had said what; Isobel had to piece it together by crossreferencing the vague reports with the interviews she was conducting. The only trouble was that none of the interviews reflected the complaints Delilah had provided. It seemed that he was a consummate professional. Reports of his being troubled, overbearing, abusive, and displaying signs of cracking under the pressure of the job. After the interviews, and after lunch, Isobel reviewed cartons of records relating to the security of the building and its networks. At the end of the day, Isobel was stumped.

There was nothing there.

"I'm done for the day," said Isobel when she regrouped with Val later. She did not elaborate, and she remained quiet as they left for the restaurant, answering questions briefly. Her mind turned the facts over and over again as she stared out the window over the city. It wasn't until they sat at the restaurant and Isobel loosened the collar of her high-necked jacket that she met Val's eyes. "There's something fishy about this," she finally declared, her eyes searching his face for any sign of reaction. "Someone is having a little fun with you, it seems, but I don't know who and I don't know why. Vodka, rocks, twist -- and a glass of ice water, please," she added to the waiter who came by to take a drink order. "What are we having for dinner, by the way?"

[member="Val Pellian"]​

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Isobel Nakano"]

He unbuttoned the top of his jacket and lounged in his seat.

Eyes calmly scanning the restaurant as Isobel got comfortable. It seemed that Val didn't need to get comfortable. He just was. A natural proclivity towards it. They had been shown to the corner of the restaurant the moment he mentioned his name. No fuss, no questions. Not even an attempt to make them wait in line.

On the flipside... They didn't make a large point of it either.

No loud voices proclaiming how happy they were Val was here. Nothing that suggested he was special in any way. Just a calm and swift proceeding. It was odd. Welcome, but odd.

"Whiskey neat." Val ordered right after before smiling at Isobel. "Crab, oysters, freshly imported from Manaan, it is quite exceptional."

If you were into that kind of stuff.

Only after that did the agent show he had heard her earlier remark. "I am lots of fun, Isobel. I am not surprised there are people who would like to partake in it." Raising his glass for a clink. "To fun... and to happy endings." A smirk there, before he took a sip. Letting it marinate. After that putting the glass down and turning a shade serious.

"I do my job. I do it well and often that means I bulldozer right over politics and sensitive feelings. Make of that as you will."

 

[Isobel Nakano]

Isobel touched her glass to his and the took a sip, wincing at the strength of the drink. This place didn't do a soft pour, apparently. She appreciated that. She took another sip and set it down, licking her lips as she settled against the back of the chair and listened to the end of his explanation. But that didn't quite fit.

"No," said Isobel sharply. "This is more than internal office politics, I think. The people I interviewed spoke about an office that functions on all cylinders. They had no complaints about your management style or demeanor, or about anyone else's. Everyone's stories matched -- which alone isn't enough to corroborate or disprove anything. But I sensed no dishonesty, no maneuvering, no jockeying for position. Yet and still, the details in the information I had could only have come from the individuals I interviewed. More curious still, none of them would be considered for your position should you be reassigned." She paused, used the swizzle stick in her drink to stir it.

"So, to recap: a motiveless crime, committed by someone who couldn't possibly be guilty, against someone fundamentally innocent." She paused and raised her eyebrows. "Well. Perhaps not fundamentally. I've seen some things that might raise eyebrows in Avalonia, but nothing that would warrant any action." She rested her chin in her free hand and sipped another bit of her drink. "So I requested your security logs and your schedule logs and I found that the reports matched up perfectly to dates when the individuals were in the field. So I guess what I need to find out from you is: who are your enemies, and which of them has the sophistication to slip unnoticed into your local mainframe? That's fairly advanced stuff."

She broke off as the waiters came with the food that [member="Val Pellian"] had ordered. The waiter that set her food down accidentally nudged her fork off the table when setting down the plate. "A thousand apologies, Miss," he said, quickly kneeling to retrieve the fork while Isobel shared an exasperated but good-humored glance with her dining companion. The waiter produced a clean form from his smock. "Would you care to see a wine list?" he asked. "The chef recommends the 831 Naboo chardonnay with this mix of shellfish, but you can't go wrong with some Chenin Blanc or a nice dry Riesling."

Isobel looked at Val. "Graham is paying," she said before looking up at the waiter. "A bottle of the chardonnay, please. Two glasses."

When the waiter had gone, Isobel leaned forward and drained the last of her cocktail. "Anything leap to mind? Cartel operatives, the Alliance in Exile? Could it be an inside job and I just haven't touched on the right person?"

[member="Val Pellian"]​

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Isobel Nakano"]

It was difficult to miss the smug expression when she described the workings of his office.

Chit-eating smug.

There was no attempt to hide that as Val lounged deeper. Some people breathed air, but some people they lounged for all that they were worth. Shifting just a bit. Fingers curling tighter into his glass and taking a sip as that little play played out between the waiter and Isobel. He studied that man. The way he pulled out the replacement fork, and the way he made the previous one drop for a moment. A pause there. Then another sip was taken, the bite making him hum pleasantly.

"That has been my philosophy for the half a decade I have been on Yag'dhul, y'know." He chuckled with it. " 'She is paying for it, so might as well, no?' " There was a shine to his eye there. An invitation to wonder just how much he had enjoyed the certain perks that came with this job.

Because that was the entire thing.

You didn't need to steal from the FOSB, if you were good at your job. They were more than willing to pay just a little bit extra. Corruption at those levels were for the amateurs. A real professional did two things- made their overseers pay hand over the fist, because they knew you were worth it. Two- make sure you were financially independent within the first month. Val had been a boring dolt when he came here, but good with numbers, very good with numbers.

Surprising what you could do with a steady influx of cash, no social life and a knack for investment.

He sighed at the continued prodding. Val didn't blame her, she couldn't know, because she hadn't been here. "All of them. None of them." A shrug, as he scratched his jaw. "Half of the local crime groups are in our pocket, the other half have consolidated under half of half a dozen crime lords. Those three got brains, I have recently karked with two of them." Literally with one, metaphorically with the other. "The SIS is still operating here- they have gone merc now, from what I have seen. With the Alliance stipends gone they have had to get creative for their paychecks."

The fact that some of the jobs they do were backwardly assigned by Val was something of a private joke to him.

"Then you have the Sith, of course." He waved it away, before she could protest. "Yes, yes, they are our allies, but you remember what Lemington said in the lectures? The more we know about each other, the friendlier we shall remain."

The idea that someone had messed with the local mainframe clearly bothered him.

Where there was a light, relaxed expression first... now there was a ghost of worry. Shadows filling the spaces, where brows furrowed deeply.

"I assume you have gone through the security footage of the mainframe?"

 

[Isobel Nakano]

"Of course," Isobel replied promptly. What kind of amateur did he take her for? "There was nothing in the footage that made me think someone had physical access to the server room to falsify the reports to command. Someone must have hacked your network. But there were no unusual login attempts, no evidence of brute force. My suspicion is social engineering. Maybe one of your people was careless and had their account details lifted. But once they were in they got the other passwords they needed to falsify all the messages."

Isobel picked at her food as they spoke, too lost in thought to focus on the task of eating. The waiter came and went; he seemed a bit nervous as he poured the wine. Perhaps he was worried about dropping a bottle that was worth a week's wages. When he had left, after placing the bottle in a tableside chiller, Isobel went on: "In any event, you'll need to reset everyone's credentials and bring in a forensic technician to find out who patient zero was, so to speak."

The agent took a drink of the wine and swished it around her mouth for a moment. "That's not the worst chardonnay I've ever had," she said dryly. "I can only report back to command what I know, Pellian, but I think we both look better if I can report that the breach has been resolved. Anything you can do to narrow down your list of suspects would help."

 

[Thaddeus Wyse]

[member="Isobel Nakano"]

It wasn't anything personal.

Just that most people were fething idiots in his experience. Most of his work involved exercising patience, delegating and isolating information as was necessary. Maybe that was why he was missing something intimately obvious. Who could have gotten to the mainframe? Besides his team, anyway. The network should have been insulated from slicers. Just a single node in the building, protected by several measures. No remote access points that were immediately obvious.

His fingers rapped against the desk, before he shook his head.

"The former can't wait." Dinner or not, but if someone did have remote access to their mainframe they couldn't wait the entire night, before it being fixed. Val tapped a button and send a simple message to the handful of people still in place there.

There was always at least a skeleton crew working at the office. The intelligence business didn't sleep. They had to be hands-on, if something news popped out. The message consisted of two words- they had code words for a number of scenarios. This was one of them. It was simple. Scenario Cren. Within the span of a minute every credential would be reset and cleared out. Only then did he look up again. "There, whatever else happens, if what you say is true, that vector is closed to them."

If it wasn't true?

Well, then everyone would have one chitty morning tomorrow, trying to get their accounts started up again.

The glass with wine was pulled to him, giving it a tentative sniff, before taking a sip. "Not the best either, but we will take what we can." Another sip after that and humming. It wasn't actually too bad, but all of this was putting him in a bad mood. If there was one thing he took personally it was their operation security. "I will give you a list with people that have some issues." Not things that couldn't be controlled. He wouldn't have let those run around in that case.

The usual chit though.

Gambling proclivity, desire to have their loneliness filled, things like that. Alcohol. None of it would have interfered with their efficiency, but they could have been openings for other things.

"How have the years been treating you, Isobel?" Switching gears for a moment. The case would run its course in the back of his head, but it was good to find some distraction. "Haven't seen you since your preppy popular lady days. Been stationed or in the field?"