The Interview, Part I

Posted on Tue Aug 29th, 2023 @ 12:40pm by Head Mistress Absynthe "Syn" Drake & First Lieutenant Bethany Harrison & Jaclyn Morrison & Private Mattias Tonelly & General Dyami Bentley (Tribal : Bent Leaf) & Carter McMillian & Unawakened Kai Irving

Mission: Drake Academy
Location: Drake Academy
Timeline: Present Day

The room that Jaclyn and Kai were left in was a bit of a sterile meeting room, with a long, wooden table. At least the cushioned meeting chairs were comfortable, even if they were made of a sturdy gray material that was a little bit too coarse to be considered luxurious. There was a tall glass pitcher of water on the table, as well as a few sodas and juices sitting in ice, plus a few snacks of both the healthy, and unhealthy, variety. There were no windows to speak of, save the long panel of mirrored glass along one wall.

The girls weren’t left waiting long before there was a gentle knock on the door as it opened and a confident young woman walked through. She was tanned, as though she spent a lot of time outdoors, her brown hair naturally sun-streaked, and pulled back into a loose braid that was tied with a thin strip of leather. She was wearing a black tank top that was emblazoned with US MARSHAL in bright yellow across the front and back, and a badge hung from the sturdy leather belt around her waist. Black BDU pants and worn looking combat boots completed the ensemble.

She gave them both a bit of a smile as her bright emerald gaze turned to the two girls in the room. “I’m Marshal D...” she paused, huffed a brief sigh, then continued, as she moved to the chair opposite them in the somewhat sterile room, though she didn’t sit down right away, “Marshal Harrison. As you know, Miss Syn is right in the other room, as well as my direct superior. Is it alright if I have a bit of a chat with you two?”

Kai studied the woman as she moved into the room. She had been told enough times by the church members that the police would put her in foster care but she had a feeling that this time it would be different. She nodded as the woman suggested having a chat. "Sure," she said but her arms tightened slightly around Artemis who had taken up residence on her lap.

Jaclyn, dressed now in what had become her customary clothing of jeans and baggy hoodie, with the hood up over her hair was slouched in her chair. She gave the newcomer a silent appraisal and slowly straightened up in her chair, but not fully, she was still a teenager despite the events. "Okay..." she said, her tone was cautious and she was wary. A strand of white hair fell across her eye.

“I appreciate that,” Bethany said, pulling out the chair in front of her and settling down into it, putting herself more on their level. She poured herself a glass of water out of the pitcher, then motioned to the snacks, saying, “Help yourselves. I know this isn’t a comfortable situation and you ladies have been through a lot, from what I’ve been told. It wasn’t too many years ago that I was on the other side of the table, so I get it.”

The federal agent paused there, allowing them some time to get what they wanted. Bethany glanced over at Kai, and the dog that she was clinging to for dear life. “I see you have a friend there. What’s their name?”

"Artemis," Kai replied. "She is Jac's Puppy but she likes me too."

Jaclyn watched the woman the entire time. She had taken a glass of water and that was it.

“Artemis, Mistress of the Hunt,” Bethany said, giving an approving nod. She took a sip of the water that she had poured, then chuckled a bit when neither of them moved towards the snacks. “Either they failed to guess at the things you like, or you’re worried about something. Take the prepackaged things, if you don’t trust the fresh ones. I still can’t stand the taste of plastic, which is probably why there are fresh options.”

Kai and Jac exchanged looks. And then Jac said, “We ate earlier," which was true. "What did you want to talk to us about Marshal?" Her tone was polite but cautious.

“Straight to business, I can respect that. My name is Bethany. Everyone normally calls me Beth, so you’re welcome to as well,” she started, then heaved a bit of a sigh as she sat forward in her chair. “I’m going to share a bit of my story with you, so you can judge for yourself if you want to share yours with me.

“I was born and raised in a cult. I was trained to be a domestic terrorist by the man that sired me, the leader of the cult,” Bethany said, her gaze moving between the two girls as she spoke.

“Julius, please.” A screen folded up out of the end of the plain looking table, showing a wide, almost perfectly circular blast pattern in the desert somewhere, that had been melted into blackened glass. “A few years ago, Miss Syn and her team found me in the center of that blast pattern. That’s all that’s left of the compound. The Preacher killed my mother in front of me, and they all paid the price when I awakened. Now, my job is to track down these types of cults, human traffickers, and put them out of business. Anything that you can tell me, will help me to do my job better.”

Kai had listened to the words and watched the woman's face. She was like Jac, as she was an awakened. It was interesting to say the least for the thirteen year old. "I was there for several years. I don't know much though, just what I learned from listening in at times. I know the Reverend had many contacts around, and if anyone was considered to be different they were taken away by what he called "medical personnel" but I think they were something else."

Jac was silent. She had very little knowledge of how that sort of thing worked, she only knew how they tried to brainwash people. When Kai stopped talking, she said, "He liked using drugs on people, controlling them. Men were rewarded with women. And women were rewarded with their lives."

The green-eyed agent listened to both of the girls intently, then nodded slightly. To Jac, she said, “That is very common in these situations, sadly. If you can find some way to break a person’s will, controlling them is simple. And women tend to be seen as property, at best. The fact that either of you managed to get out of there with your minds relatively intact, says something for your own inner strength.” With that statement she shared a knowing, respectful look. A look that silently spoke to their shared experiences.

Then she turned her attention to Kai. “Have you ever seen these...medical people? Did they wear uniforms with any symbols, or names?” Bethany asked, then reached over and grabbed a couple of plump purple grapes, not being able to resist the temptation any longer. While she didn’t require food, she did still like the taste, and grapes had always been a rarity for her growing up.

Kai nodded. "White coats over black, not scrubs... " she paused as she scrunched up her face. "Baggy black pants, boots that clack when walking, long sleeved black shirts. The white coats are like what doctors wear but there was no stitching of words. White vans were used."
She tilted her head. "Monica just called them the doctors when she spoke of them."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dyami watched on silently from behind the mirrored glass, leaning against the back wall of the small room that was filled with audio and video recording equipment. The Indian man scrutinized the words and mannerisms of the two young women being interviewed by his protégé.

“Beth, does it seem to you that Kai was there for years and does not shy away from figures of authority?” Dyami spoke to Bethany through the earbud she was wearing. “Jac I understand due to her relatively short interactions, but Kai should be, I do not know, more traumatized?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bethany gave a brief glance to the mirrored glass as Kai was talking, but her attention was returned to the girl quickly. “Can you tell me who Monica is?” she asked, trying to toss the younger girl some easier questions before diving too far into her personal experiences, attempting to ease into a rapport, rather than wander into potentially painful areas too quickly.

"She and her husband owned the boarding house and ran the Haven House charity shop. Her name is Mrs. Monica Elwys," Kai said. "They were in the upper ranks of the Church of Eternal Light. I think she saw herself as second to the Reverend. "

Jaclyn watched Kai reply and though her face was passive she reached out and touched Kai's hand which was now patting Artemis slowly.

There was a brief pause, then Bethany nodded slightly. “Kai, I want you to know that those people have all been arrested and are being held in a maximum security facility. They can’t hurt you anymore,” she said, her tone gentle, understanding. “Besides that, Miss Syn and her people would put their lives on the line to protect you. She called me here to ask these annoying questions, so that perhaps we can help others like yourselves. I know it hurts, I know it’s hard. I know that you’ve been conditioned to fear people like me. I promise, I have no intention of seeing you separated from your friends, or of removing you from one of the safest places I can think of. I need to know what you’ve both been through, what you’ve seen, but only if you’re okay telling me that.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Mattias, you will likely hear things today that you must never reveal, these girls have been traumatized and abused. It is possible that this was psychological and physical. They may reveal things to Beth that they would not want others to know about their experiences. But you need to know what we are facing.” Dyami paused before continuing, “In this job you will see the true face of evil. And you will need tremendous force of will to withstand it. Strength of heart, mind, and body are all equally important.”

Dyami placed his hand on the young man's shoulder, “We will be here for you, to help not only train you but to support you when you fall, or just when you need a shoulder to cry on. But you must trust us completely, so we, together, can stop things like this from happening again.”

Mattias was silent for a few beats, absorbing what was being said. He then looked up at Dyami and nodded. "I understand, Sir. They will have my silence, no matter what."

“It doesn’t sound like the young one needs too much more convincing,” Syn said to Dyami, shaking her head. She had tried to keep Bethany from running off to fight, but the young woman had a desire to make Hydra, as well as the many traffickers that polluted their world, like her father, suffer as much as possible. In the end, the young light-bearer had proven to be a very useful agent, but she had also spent her entire life training as a soldier. It was all she knew. “He’s of strong mind and heart. I’m more concerned about his physical training. You’re not exactly known to pull punches, Talon.”

“Only because our enemies will not show mercy, as you know too well, Unktena.” Dyami said grimly. “As always though I will cause no permanent harm.” Talon bowed his head slightly to the diminutive dragon lady.

“Perhaps,” Syn said, sighing softly as she watched Bethany talk to the girls. She was keeping tabs on the general mood, and while Jac and Kai were somewhat apprehensive, she was drawing a disturbing blank from the green-eyed Marshal. She was starting to worry about her decision to pull her in so soon after her loss.

Carter stepped up next to his mother. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Not with this,” Syn said, giving him a gentle smile.

Carter sighed softly, then nodded. His mother knew best, of course. She always did.

TBC

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Absynthe "Syn" Drake
Wyrmwood
Headmistress, Drake Academy

Bethany Harrison
Fractal
Mutant Underground

Jaclyn Morrison
Awakened

Kai Irving
Unawakened

Mattias Tonelly
(Recruit)
Mutant Underground

Carter McMillian
Free jack
Drake Academy

General Dyami Bentley
Talon
Mutant Underground