Participants:
| Scene Title | Up Up And Away |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Fedor and Helena talk about the future of Staten Island while flying in his helicopter. |
| Date | May 27, 2009 |
The Skies Over NYC
At all hours of day and night, Chicago air is a fixture around Staten Island these days. They're one of the few air assets to make trips there, and accordingly they get alot of traffic. Everything from life flight to running fresh food and water, the big red and white helicopters are hardly unknown. Their lack of a stable heliport means that the workhorse Kamovs cant land, and that does to complicate things substantially.
The meeting point was the parkinglot of a burned out drug store, a location most people wouldnt confuse with a helicopter landing spot because plainly it wasnt. There were wires everywhere, poles and a ton of burnt out hulks. One might even wonder if the directions given were in error, till the rotors begin to sing.
Painted in brilliant white and bright cherry red, the BO-105 is hardly difficult to spot as it hurtles overhead. Nose lifting, before skirting sideways to 'slide' to a stop. It hovers above the lot for a moment, before spinning quickly to the right and making a neat descent between two burnt out cars. Immediately, Fedor chops the collective to neutral, idles the engines and reaches over to pop open the passenger door. Not unlike you might in a car, only this is an exotic German helicopter.
If it weren't for Teo's vouching, the thought of getting into this helicopter wouldn't even cross Helena's mind. But the introduction, such as it was, was solid, and so Helena hefts herself into the vehicle and settles into a seat, giving Fedor an uncertain smile that is tinged with an almost childlike anticipation. Helicopter ride, wooh!
"Welcome aboard, I'm Fedor."Comes introductions from a thin white guy with a clean shave, wearing buddy holly glasses and a broad grin."Here, put these on."He passes over a pair of headphones with a little mic boom. The chopper lifting gently into the air as soon as the door's closed, with or without Helena buckling in.
The Cockpit of the BO-105 is pretty plain. The passenger seat has no rudder pedals, no control stick and no console. Its just alot of glass over there, and a very comfy seat with nice wide buckles.
Helena is quick to do so - buckle in, that is. She puts the helmet on, and is unable to resist leaning forward to watch the world fall away, shading her eyes from the sun. "Wow, this is…" she doesn't finish the sentence. This is neat. "It's good to meet you finally, Fedor. Thank you for helping us."
"Its a pleasure to meet you as well Helena, I've been eager to do so for some time."Fedor just touches the controls, but its enough to smoothly swing the BO-105 to one side and then its off. Hurtling at near rooftop across the island and towards the ocean. "Faa Regulations stipulate that flight communications cant be bugged, so we can talk comfortably here. Any time you need to talk to me, you can just call and ask for a plane ride or something. Did Teo give you my contact information?"
Helena nods. "He did." she says. "Your resources amazing. This is…well, this is amazing too. My last helicopter ride wasn't quite so pleasant." She looks down toward the ground below, thoughtful. "But I'm guessing you wanted more than just to be able to meet me, am I right?"
"Well you'd be right, this is hardly a social call. I wouldnt be adverse to that in the future, but right now I think we have too much to do."Fedor smiles, banking sharply to the right to rush out over open ocean. "You guys arent planning anything big in the immediate future are you? I may have an opportunity for us to do some good, in the short term."
Helena lets out a soft laugh. "Uh. Actually, there's a good bit on our plate. We need regrouping kind of badly, and there's a lot of individual issues that need addressing. We sort of have to clean up house, plus deal with external issues."
"Thats a real pity, I'm rather sorry to hear that. I wont load any extra burdens onto your shoulders, but I cant help express that I'm somewhat disapointed. Just the same, is there anything I can help you with?"Fedor rolls the BO-105 back to the right, running along the beach at oh maybe 10-15ft above the deck. Easily a hundred eighty miles an hour.
"I'd rather know what's going on, if it's all the same." Helena says. "If I know all the projects that are on the table, I can at least make an informed decision about what I know can be effected." Despite the conversation, she leans forward to look out the window shield, entranced.
"We're planning to substantially increase aid reaching Staten, but I'd rather not say more than that. Operational security and all, not for lack of trust you understand?"The chopper rolls left and right, hurtling as fast and as low as even Fedor dares. Climbing only as a dock or two juts out from the shoreline. "I understand your people have gone a long time without you Helena, and I know how things go. If you need to take care of your house first, I wont feel snubbed."
"I don't even know how much of my house is left, I'm afraid." Helena admits. "But if you're interested in improving traffic between the island and Manhattan, that may be something we can consider. I don't mind that you can't tell me much. I suppose it would be dependent on how it might effect Ferrymen traffic, helping people. Especially now with the tests coming out any day."
"I would have destroyed the test kit production centers, had Teo not suggested that Moab would be a more effective use of force. I'm afraid I dont think I'll be able to provide another air strike like Moab for quite some time, both for lack of aircraft and what I expect to be a radical reorganization in air defence. Most importantly the ABL, because I fully expect my foes to have realized that the man who shot down seven F-15s in a single day is likely evolved. So whats the most attractive target for an airstrike now, to an evolved aviator?"Fedor's certainly not going to miss a chance to set things straight. "So unless your people can provide me with an F-22, or yaknow hack an ABL in flight I doubt I can help you much on that front."
Helena blinks. "Oh, I wasn't suggesting…" she asserts quickly. "I'm just saying - right now Staten being in the shape it's in is sort of a mixed bag. I mean, the police can't touch it too readily, but it makes things a bit easier for the Ferrymen and the like to move people."
"I can offer air travel, but Staten is unacceptable in its current condition. Chicago Air will make a move to build a helicopter terminal, and entice retailers in with us to revitalize Staten but that cant happen without more police presence. So either the island can have Police, or they can have private security. If Phoenix can control the crime on the Island, until we square things away in a more traditional sense we could essentially create a modern but nearly autonomous region next to New york. "Fedor glances to the side "But I have little sympathy if you have placed every egg you have in a single basket, because as evidenced by the fact I and my associates were recently shot down by Humanis. The current state of affairs has not been effective."
"Policing the island is not what Phoenix is meant to do." Helena insists, politely but firmly. "If you're looking to police it yourselves, that may be advantageous, but with things as they are - and yes, I've seen the video - it may be that we'll be trying to prevent an escalation between Evolved and non-Evolved when we were supposed to be trying to encourage everyone to realize they shouldn't be letting the government take away their rights."
"Your not increasing tension, your giving them excuses. When you perform an operation, nobody is supposed to know you've done anything at all. If Phoenix was meant to protect evolved rights, then you should help us. If your only desire is to blow things up, and spraypaint your graffiti everywhere then perhaps your not in the business of protecting anyone's rights."Fedor's accusation is there, but he's still smiling as he says it. "You havent worked with me, you dont know me. I will assure you however, I have been apart of more revolutions and terrorist organizations than can be counted. What we need to excersise right now, is soft power."
Helena eyes Fedor now, and her smile is absolutely gone. "You're mistaking us for PARIAH." she says in a chill tone. "We're not terrorists. The places we've been responsible for destroying were not random civilians in an effort to make some skewed political statement out of anger. And we're not interested in increasing tension, if you actually bothered to listen to what I was saying, while you were trying to figure out how you could twist bits and pieces into something that could be misconstrued as useless. Phoenix has done a lot of good, and I know it can do more, but trying to see how we can work together doesn't start very well by trying to shame me over the group's actions or lack thereof."
"I'm not trying to shame anyone Helena, if I was going to go that route I'd have sent a letter. I'm telling you how things look from where I stand, but I do not pretend to know all or see all. So dont mistake my words for arrows, you will receive no barb beyond honesty from me."Fedor rolls smoothly to one side, weaving around a pier. "If you want to win hearts and minds, and decrease tensions then do something that the government is wholly incapable of. Return Staten island to a state of peace."Fedor clears his throat for a moment. "Because once the island is running by our clock, we can obliterate whats left of the vanguard and hopefully erase Adam from this world. Once they are gone, we can focus on the Company."
"I am not turning Phoenix into the island's police force, or using it as canon fodder to take a bite out of crime." Helena says. "I'll bring it to the others and see what they say, but that's all I can do. I can't commit, I can't make promises, and I'm not entirely sure that it's even something we're capable of managing, as we are now. But the others may see it differently."
"Thats all I ask Helena, Two men would mean worlds to me. I understand your situation, and you know I am happy to supply aid in return."He pauses, glancing across. "I hope your not doing this out of a sense of obligation, because my work with you is entirely for free. No obligations, nothing owed. I wouldnt be much use to the cause if I just put everyone in debt."
"All I'm saying is that I can propose it to the others." Helena says. "So don't thank me for something when it may or may not yield results you want." Then softer, "I realize that. Thank you for everything you've done so far."
"Also, I have an additional proposition. I just bought Archer Aviation Academy, so I can offer a fair amount training support for once. I offered a spot for Cat because she expressed some interest but she doesnt seem into it anymore, but my offer is still standing. If anyone wants to learn how to fly, contact me and I'll set some things up for them."He rolls the nose upwards, rapidly gaining altitude before swooping back in over rooftops. "And of course, I have some positions available for those who have clean records. Extend my offer to the ferrymen, and pass along my contact information."
"What about not-so-clean records?" Helena asks thoughtfully. "People who might need something of a fresh start?"
"That depends on the records, I operate an airline. I have the government all over me, which is good and bad. I'm in plain sight so I have some measure of invisibility, but I do have some hiring restrictions I must abide by. I mean unless they're all wrapped up as terrorists or something, I can get them something basic but I really need to see."
Helena shakes her head. "I was actually thinking of someone who may be…former Company. She's got some decisions to make, but I think a big concern for her is that she feels like she doesn't have any kind of future. The Company has been all she's ever known. Given the chance, I'd like to be able to offer her some options."
"If your totally sure she's clean, then tell her she can have a job. I need flight engineers and cargo specialists, if she's squared away I'll fast track her promotion. If she's a poor employee, she gets nothing extra. I dont give handouts when it comes to careers, but I can offer her a very good place to work if she's willing to put fourth some effort."Fed sweeps up higher, as a pair of Chicago Air BO-105s zoom by underneath. "Anyway, do you want to head anywhere or just back to where I found you?"
"She's not ready to be employed by anyone yet." Helena says. "She still has…things, to work out. But I'll be able to tell her she has choices, and I appreciate that. She's neither one of those, I'm afraid - she's been a Company Agent for some time, and she's an electrokinetic."
"Thats fine, consider her hired if she passes the standard checks and things. I'm always happy to help somone in need, especially if they're evolved."He clears his throat"now, where should we land?"
"Oh! Back where you found me, please." Helena says. "I can get back to Staten on my own."
"Well, thats no fun."Fedor grins, jerking back on the stick as the chopper sweeps up and then…over in a neat loop. Theres only a minor bit of cornering here to head them back towards where Fedor had picked Helena up. "Now remember that we can provide clandestine transport to and from the island, just let me know. Beyond that, keep an eye out. Very soon your going to be seeing soup vans."
"Soup vans." Helena echoes in amusement. "Righty-oh. I'll keep you guys in mind as fa as transportation resources." Once they land, she unbuckles and she clambers out. "Thanks again, Fedor." With that, she's pretty quick to head toward buildings, and get lost amongst them.
The BO-105 only sits around for a minute, before delicately rising into the air like a hummingbird and swooping away back towards Jersey.