Participants:
Scene Title | Can I See Your Tag? |
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Synopsis | Veronica is on the beat with Nalani again, tracking down isotoped individuals and marking them off one by one. |
Date | April 26, 2009 |
Brooklyn is located on the westernmost point of Long Island and shares its only land boundary with Queens. The East river borders and defines the borough's northern coast, Coney Island, Brighton Beach, and Manhattan beach are to the south, and the Narrows separate it from Staten Island to the southwest.
Downtown Brooklyn is one of the NYC's largest business districts. Between the Bridge and Prospect Park, brownstones, townhouses, and high-end restaurants are dominant. The culturally diverse communities of Williamsburg and Greenpoint are snugged against the East River to the far north. Close by are far more criminally active neighborhoods such as Brownsville, Crown Heights, and Bushwick. Regardless of the social situation, the so-called Borough of Neighborhoods is packed to the gills in post-bomb NYC.
It's a good 45 minutes into confirming isotope'd individuals. Mostly just a matter of tracking down their places, knocking on doors when there was obviously no one outside the places to confirm via pictures. Nalani to ask a few questions and then instruct them to forget that they saw them heard them ect ect. Surprising, there's been less whining from the former model, though she's still dressed like she was before and she'll still delusing herself after she's left brooklyn again. There's also been a certain brown wrapped box left in Veronica's back seat with a curt "You'll have to wait to open it". Though she didn't use her ability to persuade the woman not to do it right then and there.
Walking away from a business, Nalani's bored look has increased ten fold from what it usually is. "SO you do this every day. Just walk around and asking people to see their tattoo?"
"This in particular, every day? No, not usually… I'm not usually on census detail or whatever you want to call this," Veronica says with a chuckle. "Usually it's more of finding someone who's not already been marked and bringing them in for that," the shorter woman explains. "I don't think there's really such thing as a typical day in this career, to be honest." She nods across the street at the next address on their to-do list, noting the man in question outside waiting for a dog to do its business. She snaps a photo quickly. At least that's one they won't have to worry over. "Usually it's not so glamorous." Clearly a joke.
"clearly" Dryly spoken. One down, 20 more to go and a beleaguered sigh. "So that is what my brother does then. Runs around, taking down people with abilities and bringing them in. you mark them down in some list, paint a dot on them and let them go with no recollection at all of what has happened?" Her hand dig deep into pockets, looking ever so much the glamorous woman who's dressed to the casual nines, accompany another person, trying to look all in all , not like elite society maven.
Veronica looks like a college kid, truth be told, in her jeans and hoodie sweatshirt and tennis shoes. She gives a single-shoulder shrug to Nalani. "I don't know your brother, so I can't say what he does for us. There's more than one gig at the show, you know? Different people do different things. If he has a power, which I'm guessing he does since you do, than it's likely they have him on some detail where he can use that to the agency's benefit." She nods toward the Blackberry-esque device she holds in her hand, that has all the information they need and can take the photos they need as well — of course, unlike an actual Blackberry, it's a secured line. "Tagging these people, knowing where they're at — it's to keep people safe. It's not a bad thing."
"He doesn't have an Ability. He would have told me when he told me to stop using mine" She's sure of it. Not much comes between the two of them and even so few secrets. But if she kept this secret from him… "Do all of them get released back into the wilds?" As if they were tagging animals and turning them loose on the streets. "If I hadn't been .. who I am. And you'd come across me naturally, like one of your ilk did"
Veronica chuckles a little at the metaphor. She shrugs that stoic shoulder again. "That I know of," she says. "I mean, I don't always follow up what happens with them, but for the most part it's just finding out what they can do, getting it on paper, and putting on the isotope. It doesn't hurt them, and it's to keep everyone — Evolved and Un-Evolved — safe." She seems to believe what she says. "I guess if someone had a power they couldn't control at all, that was hurting people, they might keep them until they could learn to control it. And some choose to work for us, once they know we exist."
"Or help, if there's something they want that the company can provide" Like protection from asshole criminals that break into your place and start hollering that your evolved. Such a nasty mean cardinal, yes you are. "Don't know if I agree with tagging. That mark left on them. Thank blood fuck they didn't do that to me. Having to cover it up. Well, where are we to next?"
Veronica nods toward the right. "Just around the corner," she says. "I suppose the mark could be … obvious." She doesn't sound too sympathetic about it really. "So what's your regular job like — herding super models and whipping wayward proofreaders into shape?" she asks curiously. She doesn't know much about Nalani's world, that's for sure. Her entire adult life was spend preparing to be in law enforcement and then with the Company. No time for society and fashion magazines.
"I oversee photo shoots, demand re shoots if they're not up to my standards. I'm in endless meetings, meeting with designers from around the world. Anything that goes into the magazine has to go past my desk. I meet with advertisers to make sure that the add space being bought is by companies who's products are ones that belong in the magazine. I'm the face, owner and editor in chief of my baby. And it is my baby. I'll likely never have a child and not because I'll swell up as people claim, but because I don't want to bring a child into the world as it stands" because she'll probably adopt one down the road. "It's hard work, many don't think it, but it is. I don't have two assistants for show, it's to handle the calls and the messages and to help organize things. I'm a bitch, i'll not deny that, but I'm a hard passed bitch who's good at what she does. I demand perfection and I expect perfection."
The former model's nose is up a bit. "Something no one knows, is that this month's issue coming up almost didn't make it on time. Some .. blood hacker, or something, I don't know how he did it, IT said that the man was in and out befoe they could even trace, getting past our firewalls and all the technological speak without barely a trace. Not like anything they'd ever seen before. But he altered the whole magazine. Drawing on faces, digital copies, between when the copies of the pages were approved and then sent for the run. We stopped it in time, only 200 issues made it out altered. But it's a devastating and costly thing, Add onto that daily, there's the dinner and functions, auctions, all in the name of Charity that I have to show up as. It's obligation really, it's not voluntary. If you don't show up, then, it's a societal black mark. I have a jewelry line of high end necklaces, bracelets rings, earrings, you name it. I deal with that as well"
Veronica raises a brow and looks curious at the anecdote of the hacker. "Huh. What sort of changes did he make? That might give a clue as to who he was, if you know what his intent was. I mean, was it all Rick Astley 'Never Gonna Give You Up' thing on the internet, or was it malicious stuff, libelous stuff?" she asks curiously. "And I guess that would keep you busy. Gimme my gun and a tranq darts any day over ballgowns and caviar," she says with a smirk.
"He stole two million out of my bank accounts. My accountants are looking into it" Boy, she sure has a miffed look on her face about that. "Telling me that I need to re-evaluate who I divide my charitable donations up to better, better yet, he was going to do it himself and he changed //everything. There were tails and horns, blacked out teeth on the images, as if they were scribbling like some teenager. rearranged words, misspelled them, switched out pictures for baboons with the pink arses" She keeps walking beside Veronica, at least this time she wore comfortable shoes
Veronica chuckles a little at the baboons with pink arses comment. "Must be a kid," she says with a nod. "Interesting." She glances at an address and nods to it. "Here's the next one," she says, heading to the building since no one fitting the photo on her list is outside. "Ready for another Q and A?" She catches the door as it swings open from one of the tenants leaving, and heads within to find the proper apartment, knocking on the door.
"Yes" Duh, of courses he's ready. Nalani pushes some hair away from her face and walks in behind Veronica, acting as if she owned the place.
The door opens and a man peers out. It's a small, nerdy looking middle-aged man. He keeps the chain on the door so there's only about four inches of his face visible. "Yes?" he asks.
"Mister Anderson?" Veronica starts, checking her PDA. "Joffrey Anderson?"
"Who wants to know?" he says with a frown. There's an increase of temperature out in the hall, and Vee throws a glance to Nalani — act fast before we're on fire, lady!
"Mr. Anderson, Please stop using your ability??" By default, when she's out with Veronica, she's got her will up fairly high when talking to people. "We'd like to see your shoulders please. Please unbutton your shirt enough to show and turn around//"
The man looks confused for a moment, but the temperature dips again. Vee nods to Nalani her thanks. Her hand of course is on her tranq gun just in case she has to take him out, but it doesn't take long to start a fire. The frail looking man does as Nalani asks and bends his head while tugging the shirt down in the back to show the small mark. "That's all we need, unless you know of anyone new in the area that has a power?"
Mister Anderson shakes his head. "No one new."
"Tell him not to be so nervous — what if we were just Avon or Mary Kay sellers?" Veronica says in a soft aside to Nalani, as she types some notes into her PDA - no doubt that this one's a bit excitable, might need some surveillance to make sure he's in control of his power. Might have been released to the wild too soon, this one.
"Thank you Mr. Anderson. When you answer the door in the future, you'll make sure to not be so nervous. You'll also forget that we were here. Go take a nap" That said, Nalani's turning away to let the evolved man go in and do as she asked, a little rub at her temples. "We may need to end this sooner than we thought" Migraine coming.
Veronica watches the door close, and she nods. "Sorry he took a bit more of your talents than most do," she says with a little frown creasing her brow, clearly worried a bit about the man's reaction. She leads them back out of the building and to the street. "Thanks for your help," she says as the apartment building door closes behind them. "I'd rather not end up a human marshmallow, you know?"
"It's not just him, it's all of them" they'd hit quite a few today btu Nalani actually preens at the comment from Veronica. "Your welcome. I'll catch a taxi. You can head back to your car" Adjusting her purse, and apparently ready to head home to her decidedly far from lowscale condo.